Our Planet Isn't in Jeoprady

I've been thinking about this a little - the arguments for and against our environmental actions and how they're destroying our planet.  From the continuing global warming debates, to fracking to electric cars, it's an issue never far from being top of mind.  One thing I take exception to however is something I think we've all heard over and over again - we're destroying the planet. This is just patently false.

Our planet has been here for billions of years and will be here for billions more, until it's barbecued in a natural process when our Sun expands and absorbs it on a molecular level.  We on the other hand are a small blip on that timeline of billions of years, and I'd hasten to predict we won't be here in 7 billion years when the Sun does grow old.  Is it true to say that we've had a far greater effect on the planet than just about any other life form...probably yes if we discount the planets that have shaped the entire atmosphere we currently enjoy.  But our impacts have been faster.  Yay us - take that plants that have been here a couple billion years.

Our planet isn't at risk - we are.  We are changing the environment to make it inhospitable to us at worst, and highly problematic at best for our style of life form.  We'll also take out most of the current animal and flora life with our effects...but then the planet will do what it does - take a few million years and reboot.  It's going to recreate itself, with a new dominant species - perhaps going as far back as simple, complex or multicellular life or maybe it'll be the cockroaches turn.  This isn't new or novel - the Earth has had at least three extinction events we know of.

Where are we in this ?  We're dead.  We killed ourselves.

Our planet ? It will be fine.   Don't believe me ?  Listen to Julia Roberts tell it.