As I have aged, I have grown more objective about human effect on the planet.  Sure, I subjectively detest waste, pollution, and destruction of the environment, and I am saddened by human-caused extinctions, but I believe the planet and “nature” will do just fine.  We are part of the system, after all.  We are likely to kill ourselves off long before we stop all the mechanisms of life.  All that said, I would like humans to survive, grow, evolve, and prosper, in ever greater harmony with our environment.  For those involved in the debate over what we are doing and its effects on our environment, this is an interesting and informative article.