Planet of the Humans

  • 02 May 2020 8:48 PM
    Message # 8942386
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    When you have watched the movie, you can add your thoughts about its content in this forum. 

    (Click on REPLY and type your message in the text box)

    (To receive a daily  email notice about new postings click on SUBSCRIBE to topic)


    Last modified: 03 May 2020 2:03 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 03 May 2020 9:42 AM
    Reply # 8943259 on 8942386
     The movie was quite depressing as most Michael Moore films are. I am thinking its time we support nuclear energy!
    Last modified: 03 May 2020 9:46 AM | Anonymous member
  • 05 May 2020 2:07 PM
    Reply # 8948348 on 8942386
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    This movie has caused considerable outrage amongst environmentalists. This is a May 3, 2020 article from The Guardian in the UK. 

    https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/may/03/once-again-michael-moore-stirs-the-environmental-pot-but-conservationists-turn-up-the-heat-on-him

  • 11 May 2020 4:09 PM
    Reply # 8961830 on 8942386

    I have just finished watching this film. I also recently read the book "Sapiens" by Yuval Harari. It seems that our species has been increasingly upsetting the balance of nature since we moved from hunting and gathering to agriculture and beyond. Yet we are hard-wired to think creatively for our survival as a species and we have been very successful in increasing our numbers. As an animal, we are also hard -wired to believe that the most powerful will survive and multiply. Power can be measured in economic power. I was impressed by the comment from the woman in the film who said "We shouldn't be measuring growth in terms of life empowerment but by how life is destroyed".

  • 12 May 2020 9:45 AM
    Reply # 8963306 on 8943259
    Deleted user
    Anonymous wrote: The movie was quite depressing as most Michael Moore films are. I am thinking its time we support nuclear energy!

    OMG. I went through the Tschernobyl nuclear reactor  accident fallout that happened in April 1986. my son was just 2weeks old.We could not sit on the grass all summer long. we had to wash our clothes every time we had been outside in the rain. we had to watch what we ate because of the fallout. The food was contaminated. as a mother of a newborn, I did not see a future for our family  in Germany....We settled in Ottawa.

    I am so glad we are “only“ dealing with a virus this time . the water supply is ok and so is the food. we can pick flowers outside and bring them home . We can walk the dog in the rain...Life is good.

  • 13 May 2020 5:25 PM
    Reply # 8966905 on 8942386

    Very concerning story, Petra.  I think the film is an important eye-opener about some green technologies. I was not aware of all the damage done by biofuels.  I have always thought wind mills are problem.  TVO has a video called Big Wind. It is still available in their list of documentaries. Especially interesting because of the Ontario focus.  

    Here is an article about a promising green technology: molton salt reactors: https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/nuclear-technology-abandoned-decades-ago-might-give-us-safer-smaller-reactors

    Too many people are in the race to make money. As a result, we are not making careful choices.  

    Last modified: 15 May 2020 10:24 AM | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 14 May 2020 7:46 AM
    Reply # 8968176 on 8942386

    Much of the critique from this movie maintains that the information provided is out of date and erroneous. The following is an article by Leah C. Stokes, a researcher on Climate change and a prof at UCSB. She is especially annoyed that he has badmouthed environmentalists. Its worth a read to enhance your perspective:  https://www.vox.com/2020/4/28/21238597/michael-moore-planet-of-the-humans-climate-change

  • 17 May 2020 9:43 AM
    Reply # 8974736 on 8942386

    As is always the case, people bring out things that support their perspective, while leaving out things that do not. The VOX piece is also misleading.  The critiques I have seen of the film are that some of the info is out of date and it is not a balanced view . . . does not provide solutions (apart from mentioning population control).  I think the value in Moore's documentary is that it challenges our assumptions about green energy.  Some of the stats may not be totally up-to-date, but I believe the movie is true in broad strokes. We seldom get mentions of the downsides to windmills; biomass seems to be a serious problem, and it is interesting to see who is benefiting from green energy.  People have stopped discussing whether or not climate change is a real issue, while legitimate scientists like Willie Soon and Judith Currie are blackballed. And ( as in the VOX piece) CO2 has become "carbon". CO2 gives us a green earth.  The propaganda is truly astonishing! I find this very discouraging. If we are going to condemn fossile fuels, it is important to look at what we are replacing them with and who is benefiting. The movie gives us that.  Here is an interesting interview with Judith Currie: https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060047798 .

    Last modified: 20 May 2020 3:42 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 24 May 2020 10:12 AM
    Reply # 8989802 on 8942386
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Like others, I found this film very disturbing . . . . until I did some research.  The fact that the film was actually made about eight years ago and only released recently matters a lot because the situation has changed in the meantime. 

    Great strides have been made in solar technology that have made it both more effective and less damaging in terms of raw materials and this technology is still progressing.  I’m not well informed on wind power so won’t address this, but the problems with the earlier concept of bio-fuels have been recognized and new possibilities are being considered.  Geo thermal technology is also becoming less expensive to develop, though it still has a long way to go to make this a widespread solution.  All sorts of building techniques and building designs and materials are also being developed which can help reduce the load on the environment.  A combination of all these – and other – approaches will be needed to solve the huge problem humans have created.  Fossil fuels will certainly be needed in the meantime, but it makes no sense to increase the load they cause on the environment by expanding their scope. 

    It is sad that Michael Moore has lent his name to a film that is so full of misleading information.

    (Entered for Heather Glouchkow)

Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software