REminds me of this WT publication from the 40's or 50's and they said that the earth will be polluted so much by the end of
the 60's that life could not be sustained any longer (they always say "experts say")
What do you think is going to happen in the future...
by Country Girl 32 Replies latest jw experiences
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czarofmischief
Civil war is possible - but it'll be weird.
CZAR
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Insomniac
(((Country Girl)))
You know, I think every rational person on this planet has these feelings at some time or another; I know I have. Sometimes, it scares me half to death just reading the paper, because all the stories are about the absolute worst aspects of humanity. The thing is, turn a few pages, to the birth notices. Every time a baby is born, it means God has not given up on us, and we've been given another chance to get it right. Now, if God still gives us even odds, you should, too.
Whatever happens in government remains to be seen, but rest assured, the human race will be all right. And hopefully, if we all get out there and vote, so will our fair nation...at least for a few more centuries. Please don't worry your sweet self over this stuff, God has our backs.
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Midget-Sasquatch
I'll preface by saying I've never been much of a visionary.
But from the way practically all countries are making weapons grade nuclear material, and seeing as how terrorist groups can now come up with the funds to buy it....
I'd say there will be a limited nuclear strike in a major US city within the next decade. This would be one thing I hope will never happen. So get those blasted borders secure!!!
Canada is useless in this respect. Our spy service CSIS reported there were about 350 active terrorist groups within our 'peaceful' country.
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Carmel
The central spiritual issue facing all people, Bahá'u'lláh says, whatever their nation, religion, or ethnic origin, is that of laying the foundations of a global society that can reflect the oneness of human nature. The unification of the earth's inhabitants is neither a remote utopian vision nor, ultimately, a matter of choice. It constitutes the next, inescapable stage in the process of social evolution, a stage toward which all the experience of past and present is impelling us. Until this issue is acknowledged and addressed, none of the ills afflicting our planet will find solutions, because all the essential challenges of the age we have entered are global and universal, not particular or regional.
The many passages of Bahá'u'lláh's writings dealing with humanity's coming of age are permeated by his use of light as a metaphor to capture the transforming power of unity: "So powerful is the light of unity", they insist, "that it can illuminate the whole earth".3 The assertion places current history in a perspective sharply different from the one that prevails at the end of the twentieth century. It urges us to find - within the suffering and breakdown of our times - the operation of forces that are liberating human consciousness for a new stage in its evolution. It calls on us to re-examine what has been happening over the past one hundred years and the effect that these developments have had on the heterogenous mass of peoples, races, nations, and communities who have experienced them.
If, as Bahá'u'lláh asserts, "the well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established",4 it is understandable why Bahá'ís view the twentieth century - with all its disasters - as "the century of light".5 For these one hundred years witnessed a transformation in both the way the earth's inhabitants have begun to plan our collective future and in the way we are coming to regard one another. The hallmark of both has been a process of unification. Upheavals beyond the control of existing institutions compelled world leaders to begin putting in place new systems of global organization that would have been unthinkable at the century's beginning. As this was occurring, rapid erosion was overtaking habits and attitudes that had divided peoples and nations through unnumbered centuries of conflict and that had seemed likely to endure for ages to come.
At the midpoint of the century, these two developments produced a breakthrough whose historic significance only future generations will properly appreciate. In the stunned aftermath of World War II, far-sighted leaders found it at last possible, through the United Nations organization, to begin consolidating the foundations of world order. Long dreamed of by progressive thinkers, the new system of international conventions and related agencies was now endowed with crucial powers that had tragically been denied to the abortive League of Nations. As the century advanced, the system's primitive muscles of international peacekeeping were progressively exercised in such a way as to demonstrate persuasively what can be accomplished. With this came the steady expansion throughout the world of democratic institutions of governance. If the practical effects are still disappointing, this in no way diminishes the historic and irreversible change of direction that has taken place in the organization of human affairs.
(Baha'i International Community, 1999 Feb, Who is Writing the Future)
carmel
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Panda
CountryGirl, I understand. I really do. Even Antarctica is melting (from underneath and the seas are expected to rise .8 millimeters in the next decade) Whenever I'm faced with these thoughts I hit the library or internet and study like a mad woman about the subject. Ask yourself what has histoically occurred? Find out. Maybe take a look at the iceAge's of earth, especially the one wherehuman beings were involved and actually aided our ancestors to form larger groups. The larger groups getting together to trade or bring gifts, form new alliances (like the NWcoast Potlache). Since the Earth is a living orb shouldn't we expect changes?
I agree fossil fuels are not the fuel we need. And of course we can thank the oil people for that. But when we needed energy we found and used it. Now we know the problems and it'll take awhile to repair.
I know yah'll get tired of my "When I was in CHina" homilies...listen out of kindness... The first year in Beijing They (the Chinese) used fully leaded gasoline. The pollution was awful. 2 yrs later I went back and guess what! No more leaded gas. I was a happy camper because riding my bike to class was much more pleasant. The've cleaned up Suzhou Creek behind my aprtment which didn't even look like water before. I tell you this CGITA because when we decide to do the good we are masterful.
Wars and Wars and more Wars. A good read for me was about the Peloponeseon Wars between Sparta and Athens. 27 years of warfare. It will inspire you as to why these things happen. Since our ancestors have chosen larger and larger communities to live within the wars also get bigger.
I believe we can change the world one person at a time. What helps me to know this was the reaction in Shanghai when President Clinton bombed the Chinese Embassey at Belgrade. The secret police escorted me off the campus where I was supposed to be and followed me a long way. Of course that was after I did a review for the TV news. Any I got tons of sympathy from {{the people}}. In a police station even those guys made me comfortable. The old guard communist down the alley where I lived. Patted me on the back, You;re ok you're ok... So the regular person I think knows that this changes won't come through sweeping reform. It'll come through better education. Help for people to make good decisions about pollution or war.
With good scientific education. A basics in the Classics and we will conquer our fears.
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dawn27
If something is not done about the corporations, insurance companies and credit agencies having free reign, I could picture a time when the middle and lower classes will have to rise up and basically take the country back for our own survival. In my economics class, they told us recently that the richest 2% of the US population own 60% of the nations income and 75% of the nations riches, the majority of these being CEOs and political leaders. The very ones that, under the Constitution, were to protect the common man have become the very ones dominating and using us to their advantage. The problem is that so many feel that we cannot make a difference or change anything, so we just keep taking it and taking it (also why voter turnout is usually so low). If something is not done soon to save social security and health care, it is a very real possibility that the next generation will not be able to retire or see a doctor in their lifetime, those will be luxuries of only that richest 2%. This is why I believe it could get to a point where the lower classes are forced to rise up in self-defence. I say let's make sure we are heard before it gets to that point.. Many of you are saying that things aren't that bad right now, but how would you feel when it is time to retire and social security is a thing of the past, or all of your grandkids have college degrees but cannot find work or buy a home,, I am optomistic that we can make a difference, but it must begin soon or we could face a standard of living far, far worse than the great depression.
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Country Girl
Leonard Cohen is my mirror.
I know it sounds crackpot, but really, if you think about it, it's not outside of a conceivable realm. 1984 maybe have been 20 years ago, but it seems to be very much our future. The book should have been called 2004. No. I'm not a crackpot, just maybe reading too many news sites. sigh. Thanks.. sometimes I just get, like Elsewhere says "Waaaaay too wound up." heheh. Panda-monium, I like your Chinese stories, gives me a good perspective. I know we've all been here before, but sometimes it's all so much.... Not enough to make me be a Witness, though. Heh.
Country Girl
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Fe2O3Girl
I went on to the CIA website to see if they were any figures for foreign aid contributions. (The CIA WOrld Factbook is a fascinating resource - the index is here.)
So I have put together some comparisons of the CIA figures for the US and the UK. Unless there is a huge foreign aid program in the US that the CIA is not counting, the US does not seem to be haemorrhaging money to other countries. If anyone can find a different or more up to date figure, that would be interesting. All the figures are directly from the CIA website except the Economic Aid as a % of GDP, which I calculated myself.
What I was shocked and surprised at was the figure for population in poverty. Western poverty is probably a much nicer experience than developing world poverty, but it is still a large chunk of our populations.
So, here's the figures:
United States
United Kingdom
Gross Domestic Product
$10.98x10 12
$1.664x10 12
Population
293,027,571
60,270,708
GDP/capita
$37,800
$27,700
Economic Aid (donor)
$6.9x10 9 (1997)
$4.5x10 9
Economic Aid, % of GDP
(my calculation)
0.06%
0.27%
% below poverty line
12%
17%
% unemployment
6%
5%
Miltary Expenditure
$370.7x10 9
$42.8x10 6
Military Expenditure, % of GDP
3.3%
2.4%
10 6 = million, 10 9 = billion, 10 12 = trillion
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Golf
CC, check this site out;
http://ptpi.net/ No you haven't gone mad. I'm one of the older ones on this forum.
Guest 77