Due Courses
Oddly enough, I wonder if anyone is feeling a sense that something has to give, and soon. It is a nagging sense that I get from looking around. Things are coming to a head, and sooner, not later, this reality as we know it, has to give.
The centre cannot hold
2 Physical signs are at once obvious and subtle. The changing weather, which becomes odder by the year, what with unseasonally heavy rains, and across the globe, the frequent and virulent tornadoes. Earthquake and volcanic activity, is by now, a common topic in the media. Scientists have noted that a super volcanic eruption, of the sort that kills on a global scale, is somewhat overdue, notably Yellowstone. That aside, the next Ice Age may also be due, possibly as a product of global warming. Doesn’t quite feel like this is just another normal period on Earth.
3 Economies also seems to be rushing headlong into a dead end. The First World countries will age to death before the Third World countries get out of their collective rut. The divide between rich and poor ever widens, among countries and people alike. The banking and exchange rate systems feed the mounting inequity, and have made the global economies into the very image of a house of cards, quivering and ready to collapse at a sneeze. Our patently finite earth resources may just provide that final push. Where would we be then? Most likely in the arms of infinite debt.
4 Society has never fared worse. Government has never been more pervasive, and everyday we struggle just to survive, which leaves us precious little time, time that is then swallowed up by an inundation of distractions, and worse yet, a billion other seeming necessities. Our knowledge of such necessities is reinforced by constant media inculcation - channels for religion, politics and commercial pitches. We are taught daily to fear, in particular the ever-present threats of terrorism and viral infections. We are taught daily how to live within the system, and never look up. And thus we never see.
The break point
5 Honestly, can the situation get any better? Scenario analysis says things can -
(a) reach a break point, where the situation experiences a sudden, discrete change in state;
(b) reach an equilibrium point, where the current state continues indefinitely; or
(c) reach a turning point, where something new gives rise to a new upswing in the situation.
6 An equilibrium seems highly unlikely - there is a momentum in a situation like ours - the rumblings of the earth and the efficacy of the capital system will not peter out over time. Clearly, we are heading somewhere, fast. That leaves either a break point or a turning point. Again, the same argument about momentum makes a turning point somewhat unlikely. What new event could arise that could slow down and even reverse such a momentum? No new idea is likely to be able to rehabilitate the system.
7 The most likely scenario is a break point. This could go in two ways. The house of cards could simply collapse, leaving humanity to pick up the pieces, or humanity could experience a transformation. While no new idea is likely to be able to rehabilitate the current system, a new idea could revolutionalise and set up a entirely new system, one that is viable. Without such a new idea, a collapse is likely, and imminent.
A chance for change
8 Where the new idea can come from is anyone’s guess. But we could make some educated guesses. Assuming we have covered old ground thoroughly, the new idea should come from the frontiers of science. It would be a science that offers a new framework, a fundamental change of perspective. One that changes the physical world.
9 But there are other ways to change the physical world - and worthwhile mentioning however ludicrous. Change could come from natural discovery, by our scientists, or from external intervention, divine or otherwise. That is, intervention could arise from within the religious quarter, or more generally speaking, the spiritual domain. Intervention could also come from the extraterrestrial universe at large, which has thus far maintained media silence. Either could have the potential to change our world.
10 Whatever it is, it is an open issue. My gut feel tells me that there is a limit to how much more this situation can continue, and we’re reaching that limit, incredibly soon. But of course, others may not have the same feel. In any case, we will see how this pans out. In due course.
The centre cannot hold
2 Physical signs are at once obvious and subtle. The changing weather, which becomes odder by the year, what with unseasonally heavy rains, and across the globe, the frequent and virulent tornadoes. Earthquake and volcanic activity, is by now, a common topic in the media. Scientists have noted that a super volcanic eruption, of the sort that kills on a global scale, is somewhat overdue, notably Yellowstone. That aside, the next Ice Age may also be due, possibly as a product of global warming. Doesn’t quite feel like this is just another normal period on Earth.
3 Economies also seems to be rushing headlong into a dead end. The First World countries will age to death before the Third World countries get out of their collective rut. The divide between rich and poor ever widens, among countries and people alike. The banking and exchange rate systems feed the mounting inequity, and have made the global economies into the very image of a house of cards, quivering and ready to collapse at a sneeze. Our patently finite earth resources may just provide that final push. Where would we be then? Most likely in the arms of infinite debt.
4 Society has never fared worse. Government has never been more pervasive, and everyday we struggle just to survive, which leaves us precious little time, time that is then swallowed up by an inundation of distractions, and worse yet, a billion other seeming necessities. Our knowledge of such necessities is reinforced by constant media inculcation - channels for religion, politics and commercial pitches. We are taught daily to fear, in particular the ever-present threats of terrorism and viral infections. We are taught daily how to live within the system, and never look up. And thus we never see.
The break point
5 Honestly, can the situation get any better? Scenario analysis says things can -
(a) reach a break point, where the situation experiences a sudden, discrete change in state;
(b) reach an equilibrium point, where the current state continues indefinitely; or
(c) reach a turning point, where something new gives rise to a new upswing in the situation.
6 An equilibrium seems highly unlikely - there is a momentum in a situation like ours - the rumblings of the earth and the efficacy of the capital system will not peter out over time. Clearly, we are heading somewhere, fast. That leaves either a break point or a turning point. Again, the same argument about momentum makes a turning point somewhat unlikely. What new event could arise that could slow down and even reverse such a momentum? No new idea is likely to be able to rehabilitate the system.
7 The most likely scenario is a break point. This could go in two ways. The house of cards could simply collapse, leaving humanity to pick up the pieces, or humanity could experience a transformation. While no new idea is likely to be able to rehabilitate the current system, a new idea could revolutionalise and set up a entirely new system, one that is viable. Without such a new idea, a collapse is likely, and imminent.
A chance for change
8 Where the new idea can come from is anyone’s guess. But we could make some educated guesses. Assuming we have covered old ground thoroughly, the new idea should come from the frontiers of science. It would be a science that offers a new framework, a fundamental change of perspective. One that changes the physical world.
9 But there are other ways to change the physical world - and worthwhile mentioning however ludicrous. Change could come from natural discovery, by our scientists, or from external intervention, divine or otherwise. That is, intervention could arise from within the religious quarter, or more generally speaking, the spiritual domain. Intervention could also come from the extraterrestrial universe at large, which has thus far maintained media silence. Either could have the potential to change our world.
10 Whatever it is, it is an open issue. My gut feel tells me that there is a limit to how much more this situation can continue, and we’re reaching that limit, incredibly soon. But of course, others may not have the same feel. In any case, we will see how this pans out. In due course.