Fragility of Complex Things

Some days ago I wrote about a Near Death Experience. I was being facetious, since only my computer and Internet connection died. Nevertheless the point I want to make today is broader.

There is debate about Global Warming, strong economic interests deny it. Their only concern is the famous, bottom line. They do not understand the complexity of the systems they are shepherding very badly. Very likely the U.S. Chamber of Commerce member, Don L. Blankenship, recently in the news because his company is responsible for the death of 29 American miners, doesn't have a clue on the connection between Iceland volcanoes, and airports in Europe. Mr. Blankenship and friends will lose more money by denying Global Warming, than by doing something about it. I do not expect men of action like him, to save us.

From the NYT on Saturday:

"Some travelers took drastic measures to return home. John Cleese, the British comic actor who was part of the Monty Python troupe, found himself stranded in Oslo. He hired a Mercedes taxi to drive more than 900 miles from Oslo to Brussels, where he hoped to get a train to London, said one of his agents, Dean Whitbread. Three drivers took turns at the wheel and the fare came to about $5,000, he said."

Recently my mother died. When I last saw her she was in good spirits. She took care of her diabetes, and had her appointed doctor visits; but last Saturday vital organs malfunctioned, and she was dead at dawn the next day; actually closer to midnight.

We are very complex, the biosphere is very complex, and the only way out of our current state is if we recognize this complexity and act accordingly.