The Great Filter redux
I
ended the previous blog 941 - about humanity’s chances of survival - with a
fatalistic, if not defeatist statement: “This
is the thing: We - you and me and our leaders - don't have to concern ourselves
with all this (our pending doom), since it will not happen in our time ... so
why worry?! We can go back to sleep and leave it to future generations, who may find solutions to the dilemma. Anyway, maybe Musk & Harris are
wrong, fingers crossed.”
But
seriously, I had asked, “what can be done?” Will the entirety of the human race
behave the way many previous civilizations have behaved before: The 1000
year Roman Empire lost their predominance to Barbarian forces from the far North ... forces that brought on the dark Middle Ages.
The
other 1000 year empire, Hitler’s Third Reich, lasted all but a decade
before it imploded under horrific circumstances. These are just a couple of examples, but untold human civilizations either self-destructed or were
destroyed by superior forces ... is humanity’s fate pre-ordained ... we can’t help ourselves ... doom is in our DNA?
Leaving
aside the distinct possibility of an asteroid destroying us, or the lesser
possibility of an alien - maybe an alien AI - civilisation conquering humanity,
human kind - divided by nationalism, PATRIOTISM and RELIGIONs, some of which
will fight to the death, quite prepared to destroy a civilization they happen to disagree with - face a violent, uncertain future, soaked in bigotry, fanaticism and dogmatism.
But
there are religions who stand for diversity & peace. BAHAISM: “In the Bahá'í belief humanity is involved in a process of collective
evolution. The need of the present time is for the establishment of peace,
justice and unity on a global scale.”
JAINISM stresses spiritual
independence and equality and the obligation to be non-judgemental; Jain
philosophy emphasizes the necessity of every individual’s effort to move
soul towards divine consciousness and liberation. Jains advocate non-violence
toward all living beings.
BUDDHISM
also is a peaceful religion/philosophy, where the Buddha has stated: “Awaken
from the slumber of ignorance, delusion and unconsciousness. Awaken to truth,
clarity and compassion.”
Which philosophy will prevail? The
delusional one of nationalism, patriotism, fundamentalism, imperialism and
economic expansionism ... with the policy of extending a country's power and
influence through the military, again and again resulting in WAR? The
Spanish film director Luis Bunúel said, “God and Country are an unbeatable
team, they break all records for oppression and bloodshed.”
Or
a philosophy of humanism based on clarity & compassion, where THE TRUTH of
equality of all humans is recognized as the greatest good, the noblest goal
in life?
KRISHNAMURTI
says, “Patriotism & nationalism cause war; so long as there is nationalism,
so long as you are a German or a Russian or an American, clinging to
sovereignty, to an exclusive nationality, you are sure to have war.”
Humanity
has a choice, we can self-destruct with war, ruining our environment
with climate change or by over-development of technologies that can annihilate
us.
Or
we can choose enlightenment, where we recognize our fragility, respect the
environment, strive for peace - monitored by a powerful, just,
secular world-government, the UNITED NATIONS, with the authority to call to
account recalcitrant states - where countries work together in peaceful,
sustainable exploration, without fighting wars over territories, resources,
food and water distribution.
In
that UTOPIA citizens would strive for Gross National Happiness (GNH), instead
of an ever-growing Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as is commonplace currently.
In
the context of my blog 941 it is clear the world is facing an existential
crisis. Anthropogenic Climate Change,
brought on by continued consumption of fossil fuels and its concurrent
depletion of the environment and resources such as food and water, is a real
and present danger to humanity.
At the same time isolationism and nationalism, as
preached by POTUS D. Trump, will be a major stumbling block for the prospect of
peaceful continuity on our planet.
We probably won’t need aliens to bring our
civilization to an end.
photos from Balmoral, Sydney, Australia