10.04.2002
THE SLIPPERY SLOPE
My longtime friend Bill and I used to argue about wether Western Civilization was still ascending or if we had peaked and were now just waiting for the inevitable collapse that all civilizations seem to encounter. Bill is a man of science. He holds a BS in Chemical engineering, and pulled 8 years in the US Navy as a Nuclear engineer. He can do differential equations in his head. Bill is one smart bastard. It is not surprising that his view is a bit more optomistic than mine, he points to the constant evolution of our technology, our medicine, our lengthening lifespan as indicators that we are on the way up.
Now me, I've been a hardened cynic since about the 6th grade which is a bit young to be that jaded, but I attribute that to reading the Newspaper on a daily basis as well as watching the local and national news on the tube. This is pretty much a sure fire way to sour yourself on society as a whole. I point to the increasing disparity between rich and poor, the factionalizing of almost any type of group - be it religious, political or social, as an indicator of our impending collapse. I suggest that for all our technology, we really have not made any meaningful improvements to the quality of life for most folks, and in fact our tech has helped to make us more shut off, more paranoid, and quite frankly weaker as a species. People no longer can take responsibility for their actions, and that to me is the final nail in the coffin. When people sue Fast Food restaurants because their coffee was too hot, or Executives sell off all their stock options, while their employees are locked out of selling as the share price plummets, you pretty much realize that more so than ever before, it's every man for himself. I think that the rampant materialism that has gripped our culture is the most blatant symptom of our devolution. What bothers me most is I don't have a single suggestion as to how to fix it. I don't advocate shucking all modernisms and heading to a survival shelter, because that is just another form of regression. I mean do you think that they thought about getting rid of Aqueducts in Rome as a way of preserving the empire? Our advancements are truly amazing, but we seem to always apply our intellect at the lowest common denomenator. Do we really need DVD payers in our SUV's? Do I really need to get my e-mail on my cell phone? Do I really need a cell phone? or a PDA? The answer to all of these of course is no, BUT it's sooooo cool. We are destined to be undone by our ability to take amazing ideas and marginalize them accross the board. Ah nuts, I've got an instant message to attend to...
go and tell me all about it
My longtime friend Bill and I used to argue about wether Western Civilization was still ascending or if we had peaked and were now just waiting for the inevitable collapse that all civilizations seem to encounter. Bill is a man of science. He holds a BS in Chemical engineering, and pulled 8 years in the US Navy as a Nuclear engineer. He can do differential equations in his head. Bill is one smart bastard. It is not surprising that his view is a bit more optomistic than mine, he points to the constant evolution of our technology, our medicine, our lengthening lifespan as indicators that we are on the way up.
Now me, I've been a hardened cynic since about the 6th grade which is a bit young to be that jaded, but I attribute that to reading the Newspaper on a daily basis as well as watching the local and national news on the tube. This is pretty much a sure fire way to sour yourself on society as a whole. I point to the increasing disparity between rich and poor, the factionalizing of almost any type of group - be it religious, political or social, as an indicator of our impending collapse. I suggest that for all our technology, we really have not made any meaningful improvements to the quality of life for most folks, and in fact our tech has helped to make us more shut off, more paranoid, and quite frankly weaker as a species. People no longer can take responsibility for their actions, and that to me is the final nail in the coffin. When people sue Fast Food restaurants because their coffee was too hot, or Executives sell off all their stock options, while their employees are locked out of selling as the share price plummets, you pretty much realize that more so than ever before, it's every man for himself. I think that the rampant materialism that has gripped our culture is the most blatant symptom of our devolution. What bothers me most is I don't have a single suggestion as to how to fix it. I don't advocate shucking all modernisms and heading to a survival shelter, because that is just another form of regression. I mean do you think that they thought about getting rid of Aqueducts in Rome as a way of preserving the empire? Our advancements are truly amazing, but we seem to always apply our intellect at the lowest common denomenator. Do we really need DVD payers in our SUV's? Do I really need to get my e-mail on my cell phone? Do I really need a cell phone? or a PDA? The answer to all of these of course is no, BUT it's sooooo cool. We are destined to be undone by our ability to take amazing ideas and marginalize them accross the board. Ah nuts, I've got an instant message to attend to...
go and tell me all about it
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