I always wonder if all the high and mighty ecologists who look down their noses at agriculture like to eat food? And if so, are they eating grubs and berries from their pristine research sites or are they eating food that was produced by farmers? Unless these snooty ecologists are 100% in the grub and berry camp, I suggest that their denigrating attitudes about agriculture are laughably hypocritical.
Furthermore, agroecosystems comprise a large percentage of the earth's total land mass. This is unlikely to change, especially given the enormous pressures on resources that will increase as the world's population continues to increase. Enlightened ecologists already recognize the enormous importance of agroecoystems for protecting resources and conserving what is left of biodiversity. Anyone who continues to spout the "agriculture is anathema" rhetoric is merely lagging behind the cutting edge of ecological thought, in my humble opinion.
