There's no forgiveness built into the system. I told Barbara so, dozens of times. She was always marching off to save the whales, save the trees, sav… - Robert Charles Wilson

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There's no forgiveness built into the system. I told Barbara so, dozens of times. She was always marching off to save the whales, save the trees, save some goddamn thing. It was endearing. But in the back of my head I always heard Dad's voice: 'This is only a holding action. Nothing is ever really saved.' Barbara thought the greenhouse effect was like a virus, something you could stop if you came up with the right vaccine. I told her it was a cancer—the cancer of humanity on the vital organs of the earth. You can't stop that by marching."
"Isn't that a little like giving up?"
"I think it's called acceptance." Archer stood and walked to the door, where his silhouette obscured the motion of the trees.
"Very bleak attitude, Tom."
"Experience bears it out.