- OSLO, Norway (OTVNewswire)
- At the Nobel Peace Prize Centennial Symposium here yesterday (12-7-01)
celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Nobel prize, 100 Nobel laureates
have issued a brief but dire warning of the 'profound dangers' facing the
world. Their statement predicts that our security depends on immediate
environmental and social reform.
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- The following is the text of that statement:
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- THE STATEMENT
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- The most profound danger to world peace in the coming
years will stem not from the irrational acts of states or individuals but
from the legitimate demands of the world's dispossessed. Of these poor
and disenfranchised, the majority live a marginal existence in equatorial
climates. Global warming, not of their making but originating with the
wealthy few, will affect their fragile ecologies most. Their situation
will be desperate and manifestly unjust.
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- It cannot be expected, therefore, that in all cases they
will be content to await the beneficence of the rich. If then we permit
the devastating power of modern weaponry to spread through this combustible
human landscape, we invite a conflagration that can engulf both rich and
poor. The only hope for the future lies in co-operative international action,
legitimized by democracy.
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- It is time to turn our backs on the unilateral search
for security, in which we seek to shelter behind walls. Instead, we must
persist in the quest for united action to counter both global warming and
a weaponized world.
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- These twin goals will constitute vital components of
stability as we move toward the wider degree of social justice that alone
gives hope of peace.
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- Some of the needed legal instruments are already at hand,
such as the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, the Convention on Climate Change,
the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaties and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
As concerned citizens, we urge all governments to commit to these goals
that constitute steps on the way to replacement of war by law.
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- To survive in the world we have transformed, we must
learn to think in a new way. As never before, the future of each depends
on the good of all.
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- THE SIGNATORIES
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- John C. Polanyi Chemistry, 1986
- Ilya Prigogine Chemistry, 1977
- Burton Richter Physics, 1976
- Heinrich Rohrer Physics, 1987 Zhohres I. Alferov Physics,
2000
- Sidney Altman Chemistry, 1989
- Philip W. Anderson Physics, 1977
- Oscar Arias Sanchez Peace, 1987
- J. Georg Bednorz Physics, 1987
- Bishop Carlos F.X. Belo Peace, 1996
- Baruj Benacerraf Physiology/Medicine, 1980
- Hans A. Bethe Physics, 1967
- James W. Black Physiology/Medicine, 1988
- Guenter Blobel Physiology/Medicine, 1999
- Nicolaas Bloembergen Physics, 1981
- Norman E. Boriaug Peace, 1970
- Paul D. Boyer Chemistry, 1997
- Bertram N. Brockhouse Physic, 1994
- Herbert C. Brown Chemistry, 1979
- Georges Charpak Physics, 1992
- Claude Cohen-Tannoudji Physics, 1997
- John W. Cornforth Chemistry, 1975
- Francis H. Crick Physiology/Medicine, 1962
- James W. Cronin Physics, 1980
- Paul J. Crutzen Chemistry, 1995
- Robert F. Curl Chemistry, 1996
- His Holiness The Dalai Lama Peace, 1989
- Johann Deisenhofer Chemistry, 1988
- Peter C. Doherty Physiology/Medicine, 1996
- Manfred Eigen Chemistry, 1967
- Richard R. Ernst Chemistry, 1991
- Leo Esaki Physics, 1973
- Edmond H. Fischer Physiology/Medicine, 1992
- Val L. Fitch Physics, 1980
- Dario Fo Literature, 1997
- Robert F. Furchgott Physiology/Medicine, 1998
- Walter Gilbert Chemistry, 1980
- Sheldon L. Glashow Physics, 1979
- Mikhail S. Gorbachev Peace, 1990
- Nadine Gordimer Literature, 1991
- Paul Greengard Physiology/Medicine, 2000
- Roger Guillemin Physiology/Medicine, 1977
- Herbert A. Hauptman Chemistry, 1985
- Dudley R. Herschbach Chemistry, 1986
- Antony Hewish Physics, 1974
- Roald Hoffman Chemistry, 1981
- Gerardus 't Hooft Physics, 1999
- David H. Hubel Physiology/Medicine, 1981
- Robert Huber Chemistry, 1988
- Francois Jacob Physiology/Medicine, 1975
- Brian D. Josephson Physics, 1973
- Jerome Karle Chemistry, 1985
- Wolfgang Ketterle Physics, 2001
- H. Gobind Khorana Physiology/Medicine, 1968
- Lawrence R. Klein Economics, 1980
- Klaus von Klitzing Physics, 1985
- Aaron Klug Chemistry, 1982
- Walter Kohn Chemistry, 1998
- Herbert Kroemer Physics, 2000
- Harold Kroto Chemistry, 1996
- Willis E. Lamb Physics, 1955
- Leon M. Lederman Physics, 1988
- Yuan T. Lee Chemistry, 1986
- Jean-Marie Lehn Chemistry, 1987
- Rita Levi-Montalcini Physiology/Medicine, 1986
- William N. Lipscomb Chemistry, 1976
- Alan G. MacDiarmid Chemistry, 2000
- Daniel L. McFadden Economics, 2000
- Cisar Milstein Physiology/Medicine, 1984
- Franco Modigliani Economics, 1985
- Rudolf L. Moessbauer Physics, 1961
- Mario J. Molina Chemistry, 1995
- Ben R. Mottelson Physics, 1975
- Ferid Murad Physiology/Medicine, 1998
- Erwin Neher Physiology/Medicine, 1991
- Marshall W. Nirenberg Physiology/Medicine, 1968
- Joseph E. Murray Physiology/Medicine, 1990
- Paul M. Nurse Physiology/Medicine, 2001
- Max F. Perutz Chemistry, 1962
- William D. Phillips Physics, 1997
- Joseph Rotblat Peace, 1995
- Carlo Rubbia Physics, 1984
- Bert Sakmann Physiology/Medicine, 1991
- Frederick Sanger Chemistry, 1958; 1980
- Josi Saramago Literature, 1998
- J. Robert Schrieffer Physics, 1972
- Melvin Schwartz Physics, 1988
- K. Barry Sharpless Chemistry, 2001
- Richard E. Smalley Chemistry, 1996
- Jack Steinberger Physics, 1988
- Joseph E. Stiglitz Economics, 2001
- Horst L. Stormer Physics, 1998
- Henry Taube Chemistry, 1983
- Joseph H. Taylor Jr. Physics, 1993
- Susumu Tonegawa Physiology/Medicine, 1997
- Charles H. Townes Physics, 1964
- Daniel T. Tsui Physics, 1998
- Archbishop Desmond M. Tutu Peace, 1984
- John Vane Physiology/Medicine, 1982
- John E. Walker Chemistry, 1997
- Eric F. Wieschaus Physiology/Medicine, 1982
- Jody Williams Peace, 1997
- Robert W. Wilson Physics, 1978
- Ahmed H. Zewail Chemistry, 1999
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- Comment
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- From Alfred Lehmberg
Lehmberg@snowhill.com
www.alienview.net
1-9-2
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- From the 100 best minds in the world...? What an exercise
of their futility.
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- We're not interested in the "hundred best minds
in the world" unless those "hundred best minds in the world"
are giving us a tasty variety of single serving fast foods, wildly irrational
and audacious automobiles, and copious amounts of inconsequential but selfishly
conspicuous consumer goods. If their morose and morbid message in any
way detracts from the fatuous focus of our stressed out and squalid little
lives (as we sweat and scramble from the arbitrary whims of insentient
supervisors) we can handily write it off as another "Y2K" or
"Anthrax" *scare*, forgetting that it was years of furious code
re-writing that averted _real_ global catastrophe in the case of Y2K, and
no one has yet really _tried_ to make millions of United States citizens
sick as a result of serious bio warfare... the current Anthrax concerns
are a likely result of callous self-inoculation on a few hapless Americans
to beef up national defenses against the aforementioned REAL bio catastrophe...
Yes. Sorry.
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- A few months ago in response to a similar article (...Human
Extinction...) I wrote the following essay. It didn't make Jeff's cut
at that time for reasons of his own, but I would have thought it was because
it was too dark, pessimistic, and harshly critical of aggregate humanity
and its sociopathic institutions... I hope he reconsiders this time...
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- Oh -- And who am I to bump my gums and run my mouth?
I'm the guy on location. That's enough.
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- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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- In our present form or incarnation we are a BLIGHT upon
this planet. The evidence becomes more plain with each passing day. A cosmic
infant, we've filled our diapers to overflowing and push that vile overflow
to the increasingly polluted bottom of our overstayed crib with afflicted
feet...
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- We're such a tired insult to this planet it has lately
begun to fight back like an angry abused parent. With new diseases, dangerous
weather patterns, and colossal quakes it fights a battle for its very life.
It is the odds on favorite to win this battle. It has more time. It has
the longer attention span. George Carlin points this out clearly with laugh
out loud, but discomfiting, abundance.
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- Puny Human! Think of this planet in terms of insentient
resource, at your peril! We were NEVER its master. We never held dominion.
We have only EVER been tolerated. The perturbations, prerequisites, potentials
and predilections of this planet are only guessed at, are a complete mystery,
and very likely largely misunderstood... Hence our contrived arrogance
and essentially baseless hubris. Hence our own threatened demise along
with what we've destroyed before us. Hence the reckoning.
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- Lately, the fish come up out of the sea to attack, maim,
and kill human beings. This will be a signal to the credulous that it is
time to "beat nature back" in the tradition of past times seeing
the use of DDT or thoughtlessly disastrous species introductions... Even
now I am hearing the underpinnings necessary for the pitchforks and torches
required to a precipitate a NEW pogrom on sharks, this time... likely a
far nobler creature than arrogant man...
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- Our insistence regarding dominion over our world is based
on a BADLY interpreted concept in the Old Testament, anyway. It is an interpretation
well publicized by generations of robber barons to justify the pursuit
of obscene wealth, rampant overpopulation, and thousands of years of environmental
abuse going back to the Romans... but it's NEVER been "dominion."
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- It has ALWAYS been "stewardship." THERE lies
our satisfaction and success. Dominion is a lie. And there lies our salvation.
Truly!
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- Forgetting for a moment that there is room for infinite
pessimism, optimism REMAINS in the fact that we DO know better, CAN become
smarter about it, and accept the new reality of our responsibility more
and more each day. We are not the center of the universe, we slowly come
to recognize. We are not favored by God, we begin to see. All we have is
an impulsive intelligence that COULD evolve into lasting wisdom... But
consider, where could that wisdom be, given that we let 25,000 children
slowly starve to death on this planet every day?
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- The jury is close to coming back in on that, so say the
best minds. We'll have to see... it's up to us. All our blessings and
all our curses. They are all up to us.
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