Economists (and others) who are satisfied with nature-free equations develop a dangerous hubris about the potency of our species
Garrett HardinRead
A technical solution may be defined as one that requires a change only in the techniques of the natural sciences, demanding little or nothing in the way of change in human values or ideas of morality.
Interpretation
What this quote means
A technical solution focuses on practical changes in science while avoiding deeper moral or ethical considerations.
Garrett Hardin's quote highlights the distinction between technical solutions to problems and the necessary changes in human values or moral perspectives. It suggests that while scientific and technological advancements can address certain issues effectively, they often do not tackle the underlying ethical dilemmas or human behaviors that contribute to those problems in the first place.
Themes
Technical SolutionScienceMoralityValuesChangeProblems
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about climate change, one might quote this to emphasize that technology alone isn't enough without changes in human behavior.
More from Garrett Hardin
All quotes →Moreover, the practical recommendations deduced from ecological principles threaten the vested interests of commerce; it is hardly surprising that the financial and political power created by these investments should be used sometimes to suppress environmental impact studies.
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Thou shalt not transgress the carrying capacity
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A finite world can support only a finite population; therefore, population growth must eventually equal zero.
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Indeed, our particular concept of private property, which deters us from exhausting the positive resources of the earth, favors pollution.
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Society does not need more children; but it does need more loved children. Quite literally, we cannot afford unloved children - but we pay heavily for them every day. There should not be the slightest communal concern when a woman elects to destroy the life of her thousandth-of-an-ounce embryo. But all society should rise up in alarm when it hears that a baby that is not wanted is about to be born.
Garrett HardinRead
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