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Watching the various shows of the History Channel‘s Armageddon Week got me thinking about the fall of man. While this has long been fodder for science fiction, the possibility is well worth taking into account.
Consider, if you will, the following key points.
First, it is well established that individual civilizations have fallen. Most famously, the Roman Empire fell and this ushered in the Dark Ages in Western Europe (although the Eastern Empire endured for a thousand more years). Much more recently, the British Empire ceased and before that the Ottoman Empire vanished. Going back even further, one can make a vast list of fallen civilizations.
Of course, the fall of these various civilizations did not mark the end of civilization itself. For example, when the Roman Empire fell apart, civilization continued in other places (such as the Eastern Empire).
However, the fall of all civilizations can be seen as simply a matter of scale. All it would take would be either a disaster that was widespread enough (like a global pandemic) or a chain of disasters striking enough nations to bring the entire system down.
Of course, it would take a rather significant disaster or series of disasters to take down all of civilization; but this is not an impossibility. Unfortunately, there are disasters that are quite capable of doing this. These include nuclear war, global pandemics, environmental collapse, economic collapse, asteroid strikes and a variety of other possibilities.
Second, it is a fact that species have gone extinct, including a known intelligent species-the neanderthals. While it is tempting to think that our intelligence and technology would always save us from any threat of extinction, this would be mere wishful thinking on our part. True, our intelligence and technology do give us a considerable advantage in staying alive as a species. However, these advantages are not enough to make our survival certain. Ironically, these advantages also serve to pose a threat to our continued survival. This is because we have developed the means to exterminate ourselves and seem to, as Hobbes would say, have the will to hurt.
As such it seems that the fall of man is a very real possibility.
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There are no guarantees that the next disaster won’t be the one we just can’t “get out in front of”. “Getting out in front of things” seems to be what we do these days. Once we recognize a problem, we take forever to get a strong consensus agreement on it, then we hurry like hell coming from behind to come up with a solution before it’s too late. If we’re successful there’ll always be the nutcases who while benefiting from the fruits of our efforts will say “See, I told you there was no problem.” Of course maybe the next time we’ll be too far behind to catch up. Too late for everyone, even the nutjobs.
You can never have hope against a “2012” Continental Plate shift or a last minute killer asteroid. Man Made Global Warming has the last nails being pounded into the coffin so the question remains. What will the Liberals use for the next crazy crisis? Since they are digging their talons into health care I am guessing…….a new term like cyclopean-pandemic will be used. Maybe the very universe and all life we have yet to discover will be in danger.
Read somewhere an interesting thought: The shrinking glaciers can’t be denied. The rising ocean level can’t be denied. Man’s role in this can’t be proven. It’s a theory. We know this: Whatever claims are made that earth has gone through drastic climate swings before so somehow everything will be ok this time is really comparing apples to oranges. Why? This time, and only this time,man has been dumping massive amounts of problematic waste into the atmosphere. The word pre-industrial means just that. Those other major climate shifts took place in pre industrial times. Even that likely won’t satisfy skeptics. But the article I read pointed out that even if they’re not satisfied it would perhaps be best to play it safe and avoid the Tragedy of the Commons. I’m sure all of you on here are familiar with that. No matter how greed the individual or corporation is, that’s not the way we want to go.
test.