Is the human race a parisite on the earth's back?

No Mr.Anderson (enter tribute to the matrix scene between Morpheus and Agent Smith), human have more in common with a virus or an infection than a parasite, parasite are happy to just feed on the host and stay where they are while a virus will consume the resources of a particular area and then move on to infect more, kind of how humans use up all the natural resources in a particular area then spread out to consume more and more, spreading like a virus, not like a parasite.

Also while the planet Earth might not be alive that does not mean that is not living in the sense that the planet is home to a diverse biological ecosystem, but to answer your question mankind needs to smarten up and get there head straight or we will destroy ourselves.

yes, we can be.

We can be a parasite (clinging to one host, the earth) when it comes to other lifeforms which have as much right to live as we do. And the earth is not just ours. it's everyone's right down to the microbiological life.

Human kind has driven some species to near extinction. We are careless when it come to other life. We trample it out, we stamp out the insects which are only trying to survive like we do.

Our very technology can also be 'murderous' to other life:

pesticides, pollution, toxins. We have no care about it either. Our energy systems, nuclear/coal and whatever are equally damaging and still we don't care. It is now known that coal can leave behind toxic radiated dust. Uranium which is burnt up and exhaled, in small yields yet which accumulate.

Industry has shown we can damage natural environments in the name of 'progress'. Which the oil industry and other 'greed' driven 'progressive' actions have done. We rape the land for greed. NO OTHER LIFE FORM DOES THIS. ONLY HUMANS

Our very monetary system being the driving force behind destruction of all kinds.

YES IT IS.

WAKE THE #$%#% you dumb humans!

NO, we do NOT give back to the earth as much as WE SHOULD BE DOING.

this is reason that we can be looked upon as a parasitical race. That is the reason why God should have no mercy upon any of us, despite efforts to make the 'world green'. "Plant a Tree" or clean up an oil spill for wildlife is NOT ENOUGH.

We have to change in ways unperceived.

We ARE on the brink of total collapse.

If you can't see it, then you haven't been watching the world. You have only been seeing what YOU WANT TO SEE.

enough said......now wake up. Make me a liar and prove to me you can change. Being on the brink doesn't mean the end, it can mean CHANGE. Don't be comfortable about this though. CHANGE is always painful and must be.

We were the dominant race, most advanced, walking on two legs was a good start, obviously our brains were more developed then any other species, giving us the potential to be something truly special. And in a way, we accomplished that, but then again, in reality, we're destroying the very place we were born of. We're basically planning on the Earth being ruined and having to skip out to Mars to survive. And I'm not a fan of that, we really should just stop messing with the planet, **** off and fix it. We have the technology to save the Earth, but we're too damn greedy. There was in fact a REAL electric car, ready to be mass produced, it had no bad effects on the atmosphere,seeing as it ran on electricity. But, nope, the car was destroyed because of greed. They started thinking that if no one bought oil, and car parts (oil being one of the most priceless substances of the Earth), then the economy would be ruined, and car companies wouldn't make a quarter of as much money as they do now. So really, the Earth will die. We're going to end up waiting too long to fix this problem, and it will be too late. But I really hope people smarten up, and stop this before it does happen. We have turned into a parasite, but we are still Earth's most advanced species. We can fix this.

No, and people who think like that are called environmentalists.

I prefer to think of myself as a conservationist. Yes, we need to act responsibly towards our environment by reducing pollution, reducing waste, paying attention to important habitats, becoming more efficient, finding cleaner energy, etc.

For definition's purposes, environmentalists are those who latch on to scientific studies and then go around protesting for change that fits their ideologies. Conservationists are people who work in nature and attempt to achieve the goals I mentioned in the previous paragraph or support those that do those efforts.

It's sometimes a blurry line but if you dig deep into how someone feels about their agenda, you'll find environmentalists are geared towards doing something because they think man is a parasite while conservationists are geared towards doing something to fix a particular problem. I guess sometimes they have common goals for different reasons but certainly not always. Environmentalists tend to screw things up more by blindly acting on some issues without regard for the unintended consquences.

Yes. The only difference is that parasites survive by doing what they do. We just kill the earth cause we want to have a good time. We could live in harmony with the earth. So picture super advanced parasites that could survive fine with the host remaining healthy. Then the parasites get bored and crave to become more powerful then each other .They each start deciding they don't just want what they need to live. They want MORE.. MUCH MORE.....

I am ashamed of what people do these days. Especially with animals. The whole nation needs to clean up it's act just a bit. :)

BUT... we have discovered a lot of things that are unimaginable. Like someone said, we can also do a huge favor by stopping a meteor. We have made awesome survival. I think we rock at the same time.

No, a parasite lives on another living organism, and draws its sustenance from that organism. The earth is not an animal or other living thing.

To those of you above who seem to base their judgments on the negative factors of human survival, you should know that some parasites are actually beneficial to the host. It is not benefit or harm that defines parasite.

A comment on your further details: the human race does NOT take nutrients from the earth. Every speck of matter in every human, every human structure, every human piece of garbage, is still on the earth.. Well, okay, except for a few space probes...

We have taken NONE of it away from the earth. All we have done is redistribute the matter to suit ourselves. When we die, the material goes back. When we throw away garbage, it eventually returns to the earth. It might take 1000 yrs for that styrofoam cup to degrade, but 1000 yrs is nothing to the earth, which takes millions of years to make changes.

I assure you, the earth itself, even if it were alive, would not even recognize our existence.

No, humans just like all life depends on the earth to live. For humans to be a parasite, the planet will have to be alive and self aware. Earth will continue orbiting the Sun whether humans are present or not.

Yes, but we don't have to be. I like to think that if we were in the right state of mind , which many of us extrordinarily frustrated people are, we would eventually learn, through technology and common sense, how to live as one with the planet. But, as of right now and in the past, yes.

Parasitism is a type of symbiotic relationship between two different organisms where one organism, the parasite, benefits at the expense of the host.

Back:

1.a. The posterior portion of the trunk of the human body between the neck and the pelvis; the dorsum.

b. The analogous dorsal region in other animals.

No.