Why the Species List Forest Does Not Allow Hunting

(Why People Eat Species Into Extinction)

Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1857) probably never imagined that the world would become crowded, that the forests would be burned so systematically and that humans would eat many species into extinction. It was just that the world seemed too enormous at the time and people were of little issue to it. He also probably could not have conceived of anyone's wanting to return a place to natural landscape controls. What reason could anyone have had in doing this when there was always another and another natural landscape ripe for adventure. I guess what I am saying is that the evolution of the idea of a natural landscape came on gradually in Humboldt's time and it had its high watermark of sorts. However, today the concept goes beyond Humboldt. One cannot think of the natural landscape without dropping the other shoe. One is compelled to finish the sentence. One is compelled to state the obvious ... that all places altered or polluted by human activity can return. Return to what? Return to the sole control of natural forces and processes. They can once again become a part of the natural landscape, or at least a varient of the natural landscape, but the natural landscape nonetheless.Rstafursky (talk) 00:45, 19 February 2010 (UTC)