Mother Earth and the Enlightenment

Apocalyptic fear, Buckner says, "transforms us into children, 

ready to obey the orders of the enlightened." 

Book Review:  The Fanatacism of the Apocalypse
eprints.lse.ac.uk  By Amelia Sharman June 13, 2013

The planet is sick and human beings have to pay.

The most recent in a series of books examining f ear and guilt, The Fanaticism of the Apocalypse is the newest publication f rom Pascal Bruckner, a French philosopher who rose to notice during the 1970s as part of the anti-Marxist ‘new philosophers’.

Offering a ‘take no prisoners’ attack on what he terms the “ecology of disaster” (p.184), Brucker argues that the dominant theme of contemporary environmentalist discourse has become that of an inescapable environmental catastrophe with a central aim to instill fear into the hearts of the masses. As the f ear of communism has collapsed, our new adversary is ourselves, as we become framed as the enemy of nature.

He argues that “ecologism has become a global ideology” that, in succeeding Marxism with a similar blend of “fatalism and activism” (p.18-19), requires us to believe in a coming apocalypse in a quasi-religious manner. This, ironically, echoes the climate sceptic trope of the ‘Church of Global Warming’, whereby scientists and others are said to ‘believe’ in the reality of climate change because it supports their paycheck, akin to evangelical preachers found with their hands in church funds. It is therefore no surprise that Bruckner’s thesis has been welcomed by sceptical organisations, and that he was the guest of the UK’s Global Warming Policy Foundation, delivering a presentation on his book in April 2013 at the House of Lords.  (See video link below)

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VIDEO: Global Warming Policy Foundation, April 29, 2013  

Pascal Bruckner - The Fanaticism of the Apocalypse: Save the Earth, Punish Human Beings

French philosopher Pascal Bruckner gives a GWPF talk at the House of Lords on his new book, 'The Fanaticism of the Apocalypse', introduced by Benny Peiser with concluding remarks from Nigel Lawson.

Short (34 min.) video of a talk by Pascal Bruckner - worth watching ! ! !

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Pascal Bruckner: Apocalyptic Daze

• Date: 16/04/12  (general summary of Bruckner's GWPF talk on video link above)

Secular elites prophesy a doomsday without redemption.

As an asteroid hurtles toward Earth, terrified citizens pour into the streets of Brussels to stare at the mammoth object growing before their eyes. Soon, it will pass harmlessly by—but first, a strange old man, Professor Philippulus, dressed in a white sheet and wearing a long beard, appears, beating a gong and crying: “This is a punishment; repent, for the world is ending!”

We smile at the silliness of this scene from the Tintin comic strip L’Étoile Mystérieuse, published in Belgium in 1941. Yet it is also familiar, since so many people in both Europe and the United States have recently convinced themselves that the End is nigh. This depressing conviction may seem surprising, given that the West continues to enjoy an unparalleled standard of living. But Professor Philippulus has nevertheless managed to achieve power in governments, the media, and high places generally. Constantly, he spreads fear: of progress, of science, of demographics, of global warming, of technology, of food. In five years or in ten years, temperatures will rise, Earth will be uninhabitable, natural disasters will multiply, the climate will bring us to war, and nuclear plants will explode. Man has committed the sin of pride; he has destroyed his habitat and ravaged the planet; he must atone. 

- See more at: http://www.thegwpf.com/pascal-bruckner-apocalyptic-daze/#sthash.OGWtrwu2.dpuf

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Weekly Standard, August 5, 2013  By Steven Hayward
Book Review:

Mere Ecologism?
Is modern environmentalism science or faith?

… But just as Bruckner came to understand that Marxism was a perversion of—or an obstacle to—achieving greater justice for the dispossessed, he regards “ecologism,” as he labels the dominant tendencies of environmental thought, as the virtual successor to Marxism, and believes it to be just as potentially degrading, if not tyrannical. 

He writes: “In the wrong hands, the best of causes can degenerate into an abomination”—which is exactly what Bruckner thinks has happened to environmentalism. 

Ecologism has become a global ideology that covers all of existence, modes of production as much as ways of life. In it are found all the faults of Marxism applied to the environment: the omnipresent scientism, the appalling visions of reality, the admonishment of those who are guilty of not understanding those who wish us well. All the foolishness of Bolshevism, Maoism, and Trotskyism are somehow reformulated exponentially in the name of saving the planet.

He notes that “Marxism designated capitalism as responsible for human misery. .  .  . With ecologism, we move up a notch: the guilty party is humanity itself.” The result is a domain of thought and action today that rewards vehemence over sensibility. This is not a new theme; the “watermelon” label—green on the outside, red on the inside—has been applied to environmentalists for a while. Likewise, Bruckner joins in seeing environmentalism as a secular religion. But Bruckner captures more of the depth and texture of these two aspects of environmentalism than do other critics.