Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions, godlike technology – what could possibly go wrong?

The real problem of humanity is the following: We have Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions and godlike technology. And it is terrifically dangerous.

E.O. Wilson

Am so in love with this quote. Yes, yes, the dangers of mystifying class relations by harkening back to our hominid ancestry. Blah blah ‘it’s not the anthropocene, it’s the capitolocene’ blah blah. Yes, the word “we” is doing too much work, blah blah.

But there’s truth in it – (my favourite book on this is the late great Barbara Ehrenreich’s Blood Rites). And the medieval institutions – well, the monotheisms and the Westphalian malarkey.

And the god-like technologies? Well, look around you. Look on our works, ye mighty, and despair.

Ties in with reflexive modernity (Ullie Beck)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=holetpl2Mnw&t=4s

and Allan Schnaiberg’s production science and impact science.

Yeah, look, we’re cooking ourselves. And turning all the other beautiful species on this planet into mush.