The Manhattan Project of 2009

Yes Eric, that is the point. No amount of matter is every lost and none is every gained but, it is being "tied up" in a form that is consuming or maybe a better way of saying it, transforming an every increasing amount of natural resources into matter that cannot be utilized by nature again for thousands of years or just plain never be used by nature again but "stored up" or "locked into" nature in the form of toxins. One example of this is PCB's not only "locked up" in the sludge at the bottom of ponds and lakes but in living cells as well.
As you may know, the manufacturing of PCB's was only just outlawed in the late 70's and during the 80's thousands of gallons of PCB laced oils were illegally released along thousands of miles of roadsides in the southeastern states. Just recently in this decade has the holding area (were most of the contaminated soil from those roadsides was store and treated) been declared safe by government standards.
This is just one example. One that was discovered and dealt with. Pity about the Hudson river, huh? There are other types of pollution that do not involve toxins, such as light pollution. There was a time, not that long ago when our Milky Way could light up our Earth under a night time sky with the intensity of a full moon.

One possible definition of the word flourish is - to grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way - where as mankind has grown vigorously since the advent of the machine, has it really been a healthy growth on the planet Earth or decadent growth? Not unlike a cancer.
 To speak of human accomplishments in technology over the last 100 years as being mankinds greatest accomplishment smacks of complacency and pride. I would say that mankind's greatest stroke of luck is that we haven't completely destroy the planet Earth with our technologies, yet. Maybe you and I could just agree to disagree on that point, eh?
One claim is that people live longer now than those that lived several thousands of years ago but, is that the overall healthiest way to be? No matter what one believes to be the beginnings of the human race on Earth, it took several thousands of years for worldwide human population to reach 2 billion but it has only taken the last 100 years for that number to increase by 4.5 billion more. I don't have any scientific proof but, something about that doesn't strike me as being healthy for the planet Earth and, without a healthy Earth, what do we have? Mars? Too late for Mars. Venus? Will the human race last long enough on Earth for Venus to cool down and conceive a sustainable atomsphere capable of the bio diversity we have known here on Earth? If so then what? Start the same process all over again?
In an election of what will ultimately save the planet Earth, my first vote would be abstinence of procreation on the part of the human race (for a period time of course) then maybe renewable energies.