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SATURDAY, APRIL 24, 1993
OF
I SO FOR THEM THE ORDER OF PRIORITIES IS VERY CLEAR INDEED AND THINK IT SHOULD BE CLEAR TO US AS WELL. CLEAR FOR REASONS WHICH ARE BOTH UTILITARIAN AND MORAL. UTILITARIAN FOR THIS VERY SIMPLE REASON. WE USED TO BELIEVE IT WAS PART OF THE STORY OF THE AGE ENLIGHTENMENT THAT WHATEVER WE DID, HOWEVER WE ADVANCED, WHATEVER BALANCE PROGRESS WE MADE, THINGS WOULD GET BETTER AND BETTER AND THE OF OUR WORLD WOULD REMAIN MUCH THE SAME. WE NOW KNOW THAT THAT IS LONGER TRUE. THE WAY WE USE UP NATURAL RESOURCES, THE WAY WE BURN NATURAL RESOURCES, THE WAY WE MULTIPLY, ALL THOSE THINGS THREATEN HAVE AN EFFECT ON OUR ENVIRONMENT, WHICH EVEN IF IT DOESN'T THE
SO THERE END OF NATURE, DOES THREATEN THE BALANCE OF NATURE.
IN THE AN IMPERATIVE ON US TO ACT SENSIBLY IN OUR OWN INTEREST AND INTERESTS OF OUR CHILDREN. A MORAL ISSUE, CERTAINLY.
NO
UP
To
IS
THREATEN
I ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST ADMIRABLE EXAMPLES OF THE ADVANCE IN CIVILISATION IN THE LAST CENTURY AND THE CENTURY BEFORE THAT SCIENTISTS BEGAN TABULATING EVERYTHING, BEGAN COUNTING EVERYTHING, BEGAN GIVING EVERYTHING LATIN NAMES. THE ASTONISHING THING
THINGS THOUGH THEY DON'T KNOW HOW MANY NAMES TO IS
GIVE THEY DON'T KNOW WHETHER THERE ARE TEN MILLION SPECIES OUT THERE NAME OR 100 MILLION SPECIES OUT THERE TO NAME. BUT WHAT THEY DO IS THAT WE'RE DESTROYING SPECIES MORE RAPIDLY THAN WE'RE IDENTIFYING. THEM.
TO.
ΤΟ
KNOW
NOW I THINK THAT IT'S AN ASPECT OF OUR RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS PLANET
IT WHAT THAT
TABULATE WE KNOW WHAT IT CONSISTS OF, THAT WE CONSISTS OF AND THAT WE TRY TO PROTECT WHAT IT CONSISTS OF. RECOGNISING THAT IN OUR SCHEME OF THINGS EVERYTHING HAS A PLACE, EVERYTHING HAS A ROLE, EVERYTHING HAS AN INTERCONNECTION WITH THE REST OF OUR CIVILISATION, WITH THE REST OF OUR BIOSPHERE.
ASPECT
AND
FEW YEARS AGO EUROPE WAS TRYING TO IDENTIFY A PATRON SAINT
SAINT THEY WERE ARGUING ABOUT WHETHER IT SHOULD BE SAINT BENEDICT OR FRANCIS. I ALWAYS THOUGHT THERE WAS A VERY GOOD CASE FOR SAINT NOT, FRANCIS BEING A PATRON SAINT FOR ALL OF US WHETHER CHRISTIANS OR BECAUSE OF HIS RECOGNITION CENTURIES BEFORE IT BECAME A FASHIONABLE,
OF THE AND IMPORTANT FASHIONABLE CAUSE, BECAUSE OF HIS RECOGNITION MORAL
OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN. BECAUSE IN ROTARY INTERNATIONAL YOU ALWAYS SET YOURSELF THE BIGGEST AND MOST IMPORTANT
I'M CHALLENGES
NOT SURPRISED THAT YOU'VE SET YOURSELF THE SAME CHALLENGE AS SAINT FRANCIS. YOU DON'T IN ORDER TO PURSUE IT AS HE DID HABIT HAVE TO GIVE UP YOUR BUSINESSES, YOU DON'T HAVE TO WEAR A BROWN AND TAKE TO THE ROADS BUT YOU DO HAVE TO RECOGNISE I THINK IN WHATEVER YOU'RE DOING THAT WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER AND THAT ALL OF US HAVE A PART TO PLAY AND YOU WITH YOUR UNIQUE POSITION IN THE COMMUNITY AND WILL CONTINUE TO GIVE THE LEADERSHIP FOR WHICH OTHERS LOOK.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH INDEED FOR INVITING ME.
CAN
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