Evolution, Conservation, and Environmentalism: Logical Contradictions

They Really Just Don't Add Up

In today's philosophy of science, evolution is generally accepted as fact. So is the apparently obvious need for conservation of environment and species. However, a true evolutionist can't also be a species conservationist and broad environmentalist. It just doesn't add up.

Let's start with evolution. We all know the kindergarten version: Mankind evolved from apes, or further back, all life evolved from a primordial soup (billions or at least hundreds of millions of years ago). The details get quite a bit more complex, but nonetheless that's a quick summary that's sufficient to explain the overall results.

On the purely physical side, the theory of evolution states that small changes over time eventually create new species, new genera, and new families of life. We now understand that the "changes" which Darwin first included in his view of evolution take place on a molecular level. Strings of DNA get flip-flopped, duplicated, mutated, or anything else that results in changes to the genes of a creature.

Those genetic changes aren't always obvious, are often benign, frequently harmful, and occasionally beneficial. If the creature in which the changes occurred survives, he'll likely pass on those changes to his offspring. In turn, if they survive (or reproduce rapidly), they'll likely pass on the same change and eventually what was once a random mutation will become the accepted norm. If you accumulate enough changes, you'll eventually get an entirely new creature that can't even cross-breed with its predecessor. Voila: evolution!

Well, another aspect of evolution says that this works because in any given environment, creatures are fighting for control and consumption of needed resources. In a very complex ecosystem, this has all been balanced out and (according to Darwinism) the strongest competitor has survived to control and maintain the resources in its own little niche. Weak species, those whose eventual genetic mutations weren't beneficial enough to survive and sufficiently propagate, are slowly weeded out of the gene pool and replaced by stronger competition.