That’s right, I said it. If a few baby seals die in the process of me getting my prized consumer electronic, so be it. If a swath of rain forest has to be slashed and burned to harvest some blood diamonds to run some integral part of some gee-whiz gadget that I want (read: need), then I’m fine with it.Why? Because I’m selfish and my monkey-sphere couldn’t care any less about genocide in Darfur or anywhere else for that matter. In the interest of what hippies call ‘”progress”‘ (see what I did there?), it doesn’t matter to me if a few thousand people die to build a rocket to Mars.

Don’t shy away from Agent Smith’s monologue about humanity being a virus: consuming, assimilating, spreading. Embrace it, I say. The best parasites keep their hosts alive. A noble goal, but unrealistic. With such a complex and chaotic system as Planet Earth, why walk on eggshells and fall for Al Gore’s fear-mongering? Strive to be a decent parasite, but keep multiple hosts and keep spreading.

I hear Europa is lovely this time of year…

EDIT: Oops, I originally had Io here. Way to check your facts, Steve.