I could have labeled this 'The Rise and Fall of Empires' but due to an almost clinical aversion towards anything emperor-centric I am going to stick to a rather mundane noun. Besides this will encompass the true spirit of my monologue.
So I got to think about my pet peeve again i.e. people on this rock. They come in all shapes and sizes; more personalities than there are documented stars in the known universe; smart to not so to outright retarded; energetic to egotistic to blase and everything in between.
Statisticians and economists as well as politicians more so like to document and gab about how the people under their purview or influence are doing in terms of quality of life; wealth and health; education etc. during times of competition (or war) or when they are trying to win votes of some kind.
This leads to analysis and commentary on how the society in question is doing and has done and what its prospects are going in to the next measure of time. As history tells us there have been many so called successful societies with might and glory to their name. The British had an Empire that spanned continents for hundreds of years, before which the Romans and the Spaniards and the Portuguese and the Chinese and the Egyptians and Babylonians et al took a swipe at wiping their collective hands on the gullible and the stupid or the less deserving depending on perspective.
So here we are today and watching the various acronyms defining world powers get bandied like a World Westling bout on prime TV. There are the PIGS or PIIGS; the BRICs and the VISTA nations, outside of your usual gang of idiots namely the EU and the OPEC and the NAFTA.
It is a constant contest these days between some economist or leader trying to pitch their marketing on the world stage to identify what is working in these countries; what looks better this year than last and so on. All in all it is truly a matter of how you view the net sum of the activities our arrogant species has unleashed in the last 4,000 years of existence.
The GOOD NEWS - hey we are still around and adding to the collection!
The BAD NEWS - hey we have no $%^&*( clue how long we are going to be!
The UGLY - have you been to Uganda or Namibia or Yucatan or Dharavi lately?
Our population is now approaching a dizzying 7 billion number the last billion apparently for those counting happening at the fastest pace ever. What does that mean for our species in terms of all the propaganda material like 'Quality of Life'; 'Education for all'; 'Income levels'; 'Access to resources'; 'Job growth'; 'Gay Marriage' ...alright I am getting carried away.
Where this train wreck (if we do not recognize the cliff for a cliff) is going to happen is where there are the most uninformed of denizens. Lack of knowledge and more importantly the lack of desire to know are going to be the catalyst for a quick decimation of this vulnerable crowd. It is similar to the non vaccinated entity getting wiped the soonest by a killer bug than the one who took his meds on time. This could well be the United States if the newer generations keep slouching on past laurels and trophies their grand daddies won. The juice runneth out.
As to the other so called emerging places I have my doubts too. They have been so well buried in the smog and other crap that exists not to mention the number of people inhabiting these crammed quarters that it is in itself an anchor that does not break free. To emerge is going to need more than initiative. Some freeing up of the jamming weeds if you get the drift. Some epidemiologists do forecast that a large scale pandemic could wipe out the aforementioned weak hands in these emerging countries due to lack of access to medical care etc.
That might turn out to be a brutal blessing in disguise - brutal to those that got wiped and blessing to the ones that did not.
So I got to think about my pet peeve again i.e. people on this rock. They come in all shapes and sizes; more personalities than there are documented stars in the known universe; smart to not so to outright retarded; energetic to egotistic to blase and everything in between.
Statisticians and economists as well as politicians more so like to document and gab about how the people under their purview or influence are doing in terms of quality of life; wealth and health; education etc. during times of competition (or war) or when they are trying to win votes of some kind.
This leads to analysis and commentary on how the society in question is doing and has done and what its prospects are going in to the next measure of time. As history tells us there have been many so called successful societies with might and glory to their name. The British had an Empire that spanned continents for hundreds of years, before which the Romans and the Spaniards and the Portuguese and the Chinese and the Egyptians and Babylonians et al took a swipe at wiping their collective hands on the gullible and the stupid or the less deserving depending on perspective.
So here we are today and watching the various acronyms defining world powers get bandied like a World Westling bout on prime TV. There are the PIGS or PIIGS; the BRICs and the VISTA nations, outside of your usual gang of idiots namely the EU and the OPEC and the NAFTA.
It is a constant contest these days between some economist or leader trying to pitch their marketing on the world stage to identify what is working in these countries; what looks better this year than last and so on. All in all it is truly a matter of how you view the net sum of the activities our arrogant species has unleashed in the last 4,000 years of existence.
The GOOD NEWS - hey we are still around and adding to the collection!
The BAD NEWS - hey we have no $%^&*( clue how long we are going to be!
The UGLY - have you been to Uganda or Namibia or Yucatan or Dharavi lately?
Our population is now approaching a dizzying 7 billion number the last billion apparently for those counting happening at the fastest pace ever. What does that mean for our species in terms of all the propaganda material like 'Quality of Life'; 'Education for all'; 'Income levels'; 'Access to resources'; 'Job growth'; 'Gay Marriage' ...alright I am getting carried away.
Where this train wreck (if we do not recognize the cliff for a cliff) is going to happen is where there are the most uninformed of denizens. Lack of knowledge and more importantly the lack of desire to know are going to be the catalyst for a quick decimation of this vulnerable crowd. It is similar to the non vaccinated entity getting wiped the soonest by a killer bug than the one who took his meds on time. This could well be the United States if the newer generations keep slouching on past laurels and trophies their grand daddies won. The juice runneth out.
As to the other so called emerging places I have my doubts too. They have been so well buried in the smog and other crap that exists not to mention the number of people inhabiting these crammed quarters that it is in itself an anchor that does not break free. To emerge is going to need more than initiative. Some freeing up of the jamming weeds if you get the drift. Some epidemiologists do forecast that a large scale pandemic could wipe out the aforementioned weak hands in these emerging countries due to lack of access to medical care etc.
That might turn out to be a brutal blessing in disguise - brutal to those that got wiped and blessing to the ones that did not.
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