I guess I've spent a lot of time telling you what I don't like about our society.
Some would rightly say, what would I replace it with?
Well, I have faith. I see a way things COULD pan out, and that's what I have faith in.
The Bright Future.
I think the coming crisis will be nasty, no two ways about it.
Most of us will have no jobs to do, and we can't be paid anyway, because no one can work out who is entitled to what- money has just vanished.
Possession will be all ten tenths of the law.
The government will only really be able to try and distribute resources, whilst the engines of industry sit idle.
And protect the material control of the haves.
If you do not have a material share yourself in the means of production and distribution, you too will be a have not.
But soon, those who carry the guns for these people will get sick of serving a minority of a few thousand across the globe.
Expect coups, martial law, rioting, pillaging , anarchy.
Maybe for decades.
Maybe even the odd minor nuclear war.
This IS the future.
It almost certain that most of you reading this, will live to see these days.
Sorry to depress you.
But hey, we're not really a stupid species.
I think common sense will FINALLY prevail, before we do ourselves too much damage.
And the expropriation will happen.
And the leading armies will unite to disarm the rest, before disarming themselves.
From now on, the world will need only a small reserve army, to make sure no others develop.
And now, in a world with no states, no armies, no money, no power structures, no private property, no hankering for the past, the best ideas of humanity can blossom.
We will now know that all the people of the world together, with every voice being heard, must jointly share the control and planning of the globe.
Everything must be put under democratic control.
No centralised power structures, but a true separation and distribution of power, with all power devolved to the body smallest enough to truly do the job efficiently.
If something CAN realistically be decided at Community level, it should be.
If it needs to be taken at global level, it should be.
So we separate the power, as Montesque realised.
We elect executives, with limited frames of refernces, say a Food Executive for our town, a Housing Executive for the District, a Transport Executive for our Region, a Space Exploration Executive for the World.
The legislatures, we won't need. Modern Technology makes direct democracy possible. We can all receive all legislation that affects daily electronically, and vote on it electronically.
We can govern ourselves without creating power structures to do so for every aspect of our lives.
We can run our daily lives, without Big Brother supervision.
Global Executives can concern themselves only with planning for true progress- Art, Philosophy and Science.
And Man will boldy face his future.
It will happen. I really believe it.
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25 comments:
That's exactly why it will not happen, there will be no "community". Only hegemony.
Lets say I'm more pessimistic than you, the plans are being laid as I write.
I'm pessimistic, too, and I don't think the "nastiness" will happen in quite the way you describe. I think there'll be an all-out war of 2 broad cultures, I'm afraid. And how can there be a "minor" nuclear war, Crushed?
Anarchy = survival of the nastiest
Are you ready for it Ingsoc ? Are you prepared to fight ?
I saw your comment on crash test dummy where you said you liked being single.
Are you chubby or something?
How very Star Trek, how very Communist.
Tell me, when the economy collapses why will the farmers grow food for anyone other than their families?
Crushed,
Glad you are feeling the flow of life once more.
Wolfie- If you don't have faith in mankind, what IS there to have faith in?
Welshcakes- The two broad cultures being whom?
Minor nuclear war= India- pakistan, or the like, a local holocaust.
E-K- Believe it or not, yes.
For a better lofe for my descendants?
Of course.
Ed- Payback.
Because they receive the full benefits of the co-ordinated infracstructure.
If that gives the world the lifestyle of Surrey, then yes, they'll do it.
Angela- :)
If I was, would being single be the better option?
5ft 7, 11 stone.
Alexys- I'm not one to let things get me down.
Every bit of energy we have, but do not use, is human progress delayed.
That goes for every one of us.
Sadly Crushed I think much of what you say is true. Since I am of an advanced age I hope the "house of cards" remains intact in my time for I fear I am too old to be part of the solution.
It has always bothered me that so few people actually produce anything. Something that you could sell or barter or even use.
Even I, as a pharmacist in a hospital, was basically in the service industry, the health industry to be sure, but while contributing to society (I liked to think) in a way, I didn't produce anything tangible.
regards
jmb
oh gosh. think I'll move me and the kids to Tonga or something. I know we'll have to deal with rising sea levels and the natives trying to steal my daughter (I'm kidding!!)
yes, society is getting a little scary. I"m more worried about the family structure falling apart. Domestic violence, child abuse, drug and alcohol dependency. Stuff like that increases with stress in the macro-environment.
OH, now is a good time to stock up on bird flu tablets, water and valium :)
crushed: FYI "Angela" is a moron from the US of Arseholes. ignore her petal, she is attention seeking and ridiculous.
How could life be better than it has been (for us, Ingsoc) ?
We haven't had to go to war for generations, during that period of peace medical and technical advances have come on leaps and bounds - leisure time is far more than at pre-war levels, central heating, double glazing ... better food ??? Beer ????
Why is this 're-ordering' a good thing ? Take it from me - change is overrated. I don't think you understand how nasty people can be or how nasty things can get.
jmb- Our services are needed to keep the treadmill going, but for most of us, our social contribution is limited.
A large proportion of human energy is wasted shifting the assets of the haves around.
Mine included.
Betty- Yes, much of what you describe is symptomatic, but I think the traditional family is one of the structures that is passing- at least in the sense we know it, because I think the death knell of mongamy has been sounded.
The fact that one in ten children is ultimately an abuse victim shows it's not all its cracked up to be.
Kitty- I think it must be troll season. 'You're in my Head' seems to have vanished.
Still Angela, does look pretty dirty on her av.
E-K- It will be better for everybody, because if none of us are wasting our energy on the pointless asset transfer game, we can use the worlds resources to create a balanced infrastructure.
Without the concept of money, construction and distribution will simply be about allocation of materials and expertise.
Currently, we are wasting MOST of both.
Ultimately, it will be better for everybody, because we will not live in constant fear of the rest of the world below our ivory towers.
And ALL war will be a thing of the past.
But sadly, someone has to pay the bill of Capitalism first.
Well I am with EK - I may be wasting my time on a pointless asset transfer game - but it doesn't bother me in the slightest. I don't believe that life is some kind of test nor that it has to have any point at all or that I have to justify that to anyone. I don't want the world re-ordered at all... lets leave it like it is. And I don't believe that society will collapse any day soon either...
it takes everything that human beings do not possess to achieve that ideal state you have described. global unity will become reality only and only under extreme situaitons like an slien attack. or when the whole world is about to shatter but then once a stable state is established the devil will smile its ugly smile again.
It's never gonna happen. I like the sound of coups and martial law though. The place I'm currently blogging from could do with a spot of that...
Essentially, Mr Crushed, your argument can be reduced to a vague form of libertarianism with a dash of utopian anti-materialism. Totally unworkable but interesting all the same. Libertarians believe that every human being is entitled to equality before the law and fair treatment as an individual responsible for his or her own actions. Libertarians oppose racism, sexism, and sexual-preference bigotry, whether perpetrated by private individuals or (especially) by government. That fits your bill.Libertarianism, however, is alone among 20th-century secular radicalisms in owing virtually nothing to Marxism. So you are not really a full-blooded libertarian.
I also think the coming crisis will be nasty, very nasty. Europe is changing economically, it is changing in terms of population, people feel insecure, threatened by globalization, by immigration flows and that makes people search out a form of politics willing to ease their feeling of discomfort.I also think the consequences of the crash will be radically different to what you are outlining.The far right has learned to play by the democratic rules. The future could just as easily belong to them as to any wondrous utopia.Look at Eastern Germany. Nearly one eastern German in five is out of work, an unemployment rate more than twice that in western Germany.
Far-right parties have tapped into the discontent and made strong showings in German state elections over the last few years.
Mainstream politicians across Europe have been struggling for years to contain the threat from hardline nationalists and extremists who have entered coalitions or supported ruling governments in countries such as Austria, Denmark, Poland and Slovakia. Anti-immigration and anti-EU sentiments are already being successfully conflated by the far-right-it's a winning team, and one with a proven track record. During a period of crisis, anti-immigration hysteria could become Europe's 21st century anti-semitism, with the EU taking the place of the failed Weimar Republic of Nazi propaganda.The wheels of history are in motion, and they have a habit of turning faster than we think.Your utopia seems very, very far off to me.
And what's a "minor nuclear war" BTW?
Hey INGSOC it took me a while to find you and when me got to yer house it seems that the party were really on the edge and in need of some pharmaceuticals.
To be honest, european politics and attitudes differ greatly from those in the U.S of A rseholes and Asia, so sometimes we use a different vernacular to arive at a similar conclusion.
Although Me don't believe that an entire upheaval of societial and economic standards is at hand, Me does see a certain amount of disgust with the way our governments handle the distribution of wealth and services.
The ignorant with weaponns are the first to claim foul. Their inability to create and contribute to society and humankind as a whole is beyond pathetic.
Me don't fear the ignoramus. What me truly fears is the withdrawal of those who actually continue to fight entropy by making the world move forward. Stupidity only has the power to destroy, not incite.
Read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.
Next time me visits me promises not to be too fucked up on liquor and long winded.
STOMP!
Post Stomp: Kitty. Me finds it ironic that your attack on Kate is very much attention getting and without specific reason except that she be from the U.S.of Arseholes.
Let the cat fight begin in earnest.
Damn Stan, Use the enter key an make yer shit readable. Dyckerson would slap you with a smoked salmon fer such laziness.
STOMP.
Scary,
I assume you will be supporting Mighty Dyckerson in his quest for the US presidency?
Ah yes, I am a bit disorganised on the typing and presentation side of things but fuck it, I do make sense...
Ed- Payback.
Because they receive the full benefits of the co-ordinated infracstructure.
If that gives the world the lifestyle of Surrey, then yes, they'll do it.
* Ahem* Is this a dig?
Mutley- It doesn't really bother me overmuch in a personal sense day to day, because I get paid and can spend my coupons (or pounds sterling) on me.
But I don't waste too much time planning for my future, because i'm quite happy just living for today.
Nithya- I think decades of anarchy and conflict will make all of us realise, that we have to grow up a little as a species.
In much the same way as we grew out of slavery, feeding people to lions, cutting peoples hands off, burning witches and having absolute monarchs.
Stan- The French Revolution seemed far off in the days of Louis XIV, and things move a lot faster now.
Yes, I do accept Marxist Economics- I don't see how you can have TRUE liberty while our votes and our livelihoods can be bought and sold like commodities.
When a hidden elite in fact rule us through control of the worlds resources.
I think you underestimate just how amazing humanity is- we are only starting to climb the slope to our pinnacle.
As for the minor nuclear war thing, as I said to Welshcakes, Localised might have been a better term.
I was thinking between India and Pakistan, or Iran and Israel.
Monster- I always think one of the keyb signs of a healthy society, is the space it creates for creativity.
Unless a society has SOME mechanism for supporting its brightest lights while they sit around and think, no real thinking gets done.
The Rennaisance proved that. Every brutal Italian despot wanted his pwn poet, artist and philosopher- and look at the result.
Most of our great minds are wasted in corporate law, or some such rubbish.
Ubermouth- I simply used Surrey as an example of the richest county in one of the richest countries in the world.
Life in Surrey is easy, compared to life in Swaziland.
I could as easily have said Orange County, California.
Mr Crushed, point taken but the concept of a localised nuclear war is a misnomer. A nuclear conflict between Israel and Iran would not in any sense be localised. It would immediately evolve into a religious one, a conflict between Judaism and Islam.
As for India and Pakistan both have previously tested nuclear weapons and are now thought to have between 109 and 172 weapons of unknown yield.According to what I have read, the level of fatalities predicted due to immediate radiation, blast, and fire damage from an attack using 50 nuclear weapons with 15-kt yield pretty horrific.Such an exchange between India and Pakistan could produce about 21 million fatalities and the permanent abandonment of large areas of land leading to severe economic and social repercussions....
you are gross.
I'm beginning to worry about you Bluenose.
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