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« on: March 24, 2014, 07:23:21 pm »
So, I have been thinking about starting a thread like this for quite some time. There are so many elements I want to bring to the plate, but I will just throw some stuff out there and see where this thread goes.
Some might suggest that the western civilization is in the middle of its closing stages of collapse. Some parallels have been drawn with the collapse of the Roman empire. Although it is still unclear what really caused the collapse(I think?) there are suggestions that a few key points might have described, at least, its symptoms of collapse. So I thought I should just mention these points and see if we can see some parallels to the western empire.
First there was an increasing gap between rich and poor, wealth touched fewer and fewer hands.
A more intricate and complicated bureaucracy.
The standing armies and focus on the military was increased.
The amount of "bread and circus" provided to the public was also increasing.
If we look at the western empire, can we agree that all of those points are, at least, noticeable?. What we can agree upon is that the empire will collapse at some point, it is only a matter of how and when. We might also substitute the word collapse for transformation, but I will come back to that.
I also think that we can agree that when I say "western empire", I am mainly talking about the US, although the tentacles of Mcworld are seen almost everywhere on the globe. To me the world is turning into a giant mall, and the global village is certainly not a conspiracy anymore. It is right here. Can we even mention one thing that can not be traced back to a corporation of some sorts. Anything that does not have a price on its head, or will have in the near future?.
The amount of bread and circus that we have available now is really mindblowing. Instant access to everything all the time. That is what kids grow up into nowadays. To me it seems crucial that some kind of guidance is needed so that this does not run completely amok. Of course, the net have its wonderful perks, but it is also important to see that corporations own everything in that space too. Always selling something, commercialized to the bone.
So if this global culture is like 90% kitch, recycled garbage that has no cultural value at all(famous people spewing out garbage) what would you actually want to save? What is worth keeping in the western empire? If the collapse comes what aspect of our culture is worth recycling to future generations?.
I think this is a really big deal, because I am reasonably convinced that this empire is going to crash, and what then?
What will be the tipping point, can be many things, including the points mentioned earlier.
Our cultural programming has to change at some point, along with this cultural collapse/transformation. What will this new programming consist of?
I must stress the importance of discussing this, because it can happen any day now. Or in 50-100 years, but why take the risk of just sitting back and ignore this, when the consequences are so dramatic.