Some Kind of Narcissism: WWF Says It’s Saving Life Itself

July 10, 2013

The World Wildlife Fund, which used to care about the well-being of particular animal species, now says its mission is “to save life on Earth.”

According to the Smithsonian Institute, homo sapiens evolved a mere 200,000 years ago. Planet Earth is much, much older. About 4.5 billion years old.

In other words, plants and animals were being born and then going extinct billions of years before we came along. Lush, verdant life existed prior to our relatively recent appearance – and will continue to flourish until the sun runs out of hydrogen in another five or so billion years.

Even if a nuclear holocaust devastates the planet, even if every last human is vaporized, life itself will prevail. After the volcano erupts, after lava obliterates everything in its path, living things reassert themselves. As Jeff Goldblum’s character says in the Jurrassic Park movie, “Life finds a way.”

So what kind of egomaniac do you have to be to imagine that, without you, life itself wouldn’t exist?

The kind of egomaniac who works for the World Wildlife Fund. A current WWF job posting for a position in Nepal ends this way:

WWF is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply. Please join us on our mission to save life on Earth. [bold added, backed up here]

Fifty years ago, when the WWF began, it aspired merely to ensure the well-being of particular species of animals. Since that time this organization has grown so large, wealthy, fat, and powerful it now imagines that life itself would vanish without it.

That’s some kind of narcissism.

Take a good look at this job posting. It’s for a full-time position with a five-year project called Hariyo Ban. The project is being run by the WWF, but they aren’t paying for it. Instead, American taxpayers are picking up the tab. Say what?

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