The role of the individual is largely insignificant in world affairs but it’s not zero. Each of us can make an intervention. And each of us should. Jettison the car pethaps. Cease one’s addiction to flying. Change to a more sustainable diet. Rage against the polluting corporates. Turn the pen against the propaganda machine. Take radical action as befits the circumstances. All this has to be better than passivity and despair.

Yes, we are a highly ingenious species. But also an incredibly shortsighted one. Which trait will win out in this lethal struggle between antithical poles? No way of knowing in advance of course, but best not bet your money on human ingenuity and rationality. We don’t have a great track record in this regard. Our tribal and base instincts are still far too deeply ingrained.

So if you’re waiting for the tech geeks to bail us out at the eleventh hour you may very well be disappointed. Far better to take your very own heroic stand now whilst the global eco-systems still allow. Maybe it’s too late already, but maybe it’s not. Either way, the head-in-the-sand option doesn’t seem to have much going for it amidst the never ending fires, floods and life sapping droughts. Start by reading these polemical rhymes and take things from there.