Problems of this World Today

The Problems of this World Today (Part 1)

We face today an unprecedented set of problems relating to The Environment, The Coming One World Order and the ongoing process of Spiritual Decline. We stand at the Abyss, at the steadily approaching threshold of unimaginable chaos, calamity, death and destruction. But there exists a lasting solution to these issues facing humankind. It derives from the notion of the power of ideas and an idea so powerful that it’s effect upon the World will be most profound.

This chapter is about the problems that we, together as the human race, face in present times. It concerns some of the ominous circumstances of the current age that threaten not only the well being of collective humanity but also, perhaps, the very Environmental and Ecological systems that support life on Earth as we know it today. We’ll be showing that there exists an answer and an antidote to the ills of the Planet.

So what are these most significant problems of the World? I find it useful to group these very major issues into four broad categories. We'll list them here in outline and then elaborate upon them more fully.

The first category relate to the Environmental and Ecological problems of the World. Which includes issues relating to ecological destruction, resource depletion and atmospheric change, i.e. Global warming. I also included in this category the problem of over population which exacerbates these environmental issues though this might equally well be considered as a Social and Political problem.

The second category relates to the Problems in the Social, Economic and Political Spheres of human activity. Including problems relating to the 'Coming One World Order', that is the issues relating to the ongoing integration of all humanity into a single cohesive whole. We live in a World partly characterized, unfortunately, by corruption, oppression, exploitation, conspiracy and injustice. And a world riddled with division, conflict, terrorism and mutual distrust.

The third category concerns the spiritual problems of present times. This relates to the issues surrounding the process of Secularization and the reaction of Religion in the face of the rise of Scientific Rationalism, i.e. its falling away into Secular Humanism and degeneration into Religious Fundamentalism.

The fourth and final category concerns the problems of the age relating to the realm of ideas. That is the problems and puzzles which vex Scientists, Philosophers and Theologians. At first it may seem a little incongruous to consider these more academic problems in the same discussion as some of the more apparent issues mentioned earlier i.e. the Socio-Economic, Political and Environmental problems of this World. However as we’ll later be showing, there is a fundamental relationship between the more abstract problems in this World in the realm of pure ideas and those that might be considered more concrete. That is, we’ll be discussing how ideas can and do impact on human affairs in powerful and often determining ways. Towards the latter part of this Chapter I show how ideas, and one idea especially, have the power to potential produce a lasting solution to the problems of this World.

So we shall now examine each of these problem categories in more detail.

1. The Environmental and Ecological problems of the times. A Planet in Peril.

It is generally acknowledged that in the World today there are potentially calamitous problems relating to environmental destruction, resource depletion, global warming and over population. The natural resources of this planet, its forests, fisheries and crop lands are already being used at such a rate that is unsustainable. We are already using the planets renewable resources faster than what the planet can replenish. This trend is related to the ongoing and accelerating process of species extinction and the destruction of natural habitats such as the tropical rainforests, whole ocean ecosystems, rivers and coastal wetlands. This gradual destruction of the earths biosphere, its animal and plant species together with their complex webs of self sustenance, is certainly set to continue as human population growth and increased economic activity imposes more pressures on the planetary ecosystem. The worlds population at an estimated 7 billion people today, is projected to grow to over 10 billion people as early as 2050. This is coupled with massive growth in economic activity lead by the surging economies of China and India and further boosted by economic growth in the rest of the World as well. If the Planet is already struggling to cope with the demands placed upon it by the human race currently, when we also factor in these other considerations, then certainly we are heading for some interesting times. The United Nations Environment Programme and the World Wildlife Fund for Nature issued a joint report in 2000 that said, 'The World's seas, fresh waters, forests and croplands are being exploited at such a rate that nothing will be left by 2075'. Also food shortages and food price hikes that were experienced by the World in 2008 may be the shape of things to come.

Global Warming:

Another major problem that looms on the horizon and one that probably is already upon us and exerting its effects, is the phenomenon of Global Warming. It can be argued endlessly whether Global Warming is man made or whether it's a naturally occurring phenomenon, however the empirical evidence certainly shows that Global Warming is indeed occurring. This is made manifest in the melting glaciers and polar ice caps, the increase in hurricane activity (with category 4 and 5 hurricanes, the most intense, doubling in frequency over the past 50 years), changing rainfall patterns and of course the actual increases in measured surface temperatures.

The majority verdict of the scientific community points towards the notion that Global Warming is at least partly man made and brought about through the emissions of so called green house gases such as methane and carbon dioxide, which causes the earths atmosphere to retain more heat. Also based on computer climate models, it is projected that Global Warming will continue with potentially dire consequences for vast numbers of people living on this planet. These predictions vary with some scenarios describing temperature rises of 1 or 2 degrees centigrade coupled with sea level rises of 80cm or so. Other models predict temperature rises of 3 to 5 degrees centigrade coupled with sea level rises of 7m! At the extreme end we find truly doomsday scenarios where the earths atmosphere is changed to such an extent that it becomes similar to that of the planet Venus, with surface temperatures way above the boiling point of water, that is 250 degrees Celsius together with sulfuric acid rain. Though seemingly far fetched, the world renowned scientist Stephen Hawking cited this scenario as a distinct future possibility.

Even without considering these future predictions we are already being affected by climate change in a way that is detrimental to human life and well-being. It is estimated that over 27,000 died as a direct result of the 2003 freak heat wave that was experienced over Western Europe. Those that died were many the very old and the very young. The deaths that have resulted from crop failures in The Third World, brought about as an indirect consequence of climate change, may number into the millions. Hurricane Katrina which a few years ago hit the Southern coastal city of New Orleans in the USA is estimated to have killed over 1000 people.

Water Scarcity:

A problem that is related to Global Warming concerns the availability of water resources to the worlds people. It has been estimated by the United Nations that due to population growth, pollution and global warming the average persons water supply will be cut by a third over the next 20 years. This would be a major inconvenience in the developed and industrialized countries but in the Third World where 90% of the water supply is used for agriculture, the consequences will be disastrous. Even in Australia which at the time of writing this, is in a drought that has lasted 6 years, is facing the ruin of large swathes of its agricultural industry. It has been said by strategists that in the future wars will be fought over water, this most essential of requirements for sustaining life. For instance, King Abdullah of Jordan has said ‘future potential conflict in our area is not over land, it is over water.' It is a certainty that the problems deriving from water scarcity will increase sharply over the years to come.

Peak Oil, Peak Gas and Peak Uranium:

A serious problem looming over the horizon is that of fuel shortages due to the peaking in production and subsequent decline in output of three of the Worlds most important energy sources, that is Oil, Gas and Uranium Ore. The Worlds output of all these commodities is described by what’s known as the Hubbert Curve, which describes how the output of each of these energy resources will peak at a certain point in time but thereafter production of the commodity go into terminal decline. At the same time the World demand for the same commodity will either grow or remain constant thereby producing a supply shortfall, pushing up prices and producing a state of scarcity for that resource. This can lead to Political instability, Economic problems and even War when countries use force of arms to try to secure their energy supplies. The dates for these eventualities are around 2010 for Peak Oil, though some commentators think we have already got there. The estimates for the time of Peak Gas range from around 2020 to 2030 and that for Peak Uranium at around 2025 to 2035.

2. The Social, Economic and Political Problems of the World, And the Coming One World Order:

Without a doubt, like no time before in recorded history, the world is becoming one place. This phenomenon is variously labelled the Global Village, the process of Globalization or the Coming One World Order. It is characterized by an integration and coming together of all the people and spheres of human activity around the world through trade, economic integration, political union and cultural exchange. This process of the coming together of humanity is facilitated by modern technologies such as the Internet, the Jumbo Jet and the other facets of the world logistical transport and communication system, which is gradually making into a single entity the entire human race.

However this coming togetherness of humanity is accompanied by a host of difficulties and seemingly intractable problems that derive partly from cultural, ideological and religious differences, but also from the perceived injustices of this world, its iniquity and the exploitative nature of some international relationships. Though humanity is coming together, we still live in a world of ideological and religious differences, mutual distrust and enmity. A world of racial and ethnic disharmony and one characterized by massive disparities in wealth and availability or access to the basic resources needed to sustain human life. These are the roots that give rise to some of the problems of the Coming One World Order.

This second problem category relating to the Coming One World Order really concerns all the problems of this World relating to issues of Political, Economic and Social organization and behavior. This problem category would include problems arising from social divisions, either racial, religious or national etc. but also economic issues to with trade disputes, labour exploitation and Wealth or income disparity. Then are general problems relating to tyranny, oppression, social injustice and inequality. It is the case that the coming One World Order or Global Village can be accurately described as a Social, Economic and Political entity; naturally therefore it would seem sensible to group these Social, Economic and Political problems of the World under a single category. We’ll explore some specific problems which exist in this category.

Global Terrorism:

We are faced with the problem of Global Terrorism which has been called the shadow of the process of Globalization. As the world is becoming one place, so it is that the effects of terrorism have global effects. Also it may be understood that the causes of this global terrorism are likewise global in nature, with disaffected individuals and groups caught up in ideologies of global scope and participating in causes that transcend international and even inter-continental barriers. We see this particularly in the Muslim world, where issues in Palestine, Bosnia, Afghanistan or Iraq can mobilize people on the other side of the world to want to make interventions. This process is followed by international powers such as the United States, which in order to protect its people and economic interests, is compelled to make its own global interventions to counteract perceived threats and in the process perhaps exacerbating the problems these measures were designed to remedy in the first place.

Globalization and Problems of Economic Integration:

A major facet of globalization is the massive increases in international trade that we have witnessed in recent years. This process has been encouraged by institutions such as the World Trade Organization, boosted by regional trading blocks such as the European Union, the North American Free Trade Agreement, the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) and further facilitated by trade agreements between individual nations. The benefits of international trade are many, i.e. competition, lower consumer prices, increased consumer choice and the increased availability of goods and services.

So generally speaking international free trade is a good thing. There are however problems which accompany this increased global flow of goods, services, ideas and people. Even though international trade benefits the vast majority of people in this world overall, there will at the same time be winners and losers. In a globally competitive market place some firms, those that have the most attractive products and services, will see an increase in business. While those with products and services that are less appealing to the consumer will see decreases in demand for their output and will be forced to improve, diversify or else go bust. Also the same is true for entire nations. Countries which have established entire industries in for example coal mining, car manufacture or certain types of agricultural produce, may find these sectors of their economies under threat in a world market. Other nations may enjoy competitive advantages in these industries which allow them to produce more efficiently, more cheaply or to a higher standard, thus enabling them to win out in the market place. This competitive pressure is often cited as one of the benefits as firms and corporations focus their efforts on making their products and services better. The winner of this process is the consumer on a local, national and international level. However there are limits to how far individual firms and certain industries of specific nations are able to compete and so inevitably firms will go bankrupt and countries may have entire industrial sectors decimated. This results in painful transitions and people losing their jobs. Sometimes the effects can be severe causing mass unemployment and serious social upheaval.

One of the direct results of globalization and the international market is the flow of labour around the world as people migrate to find work. This mass migration of people is made up of those people going to countries where their skills are most in demand and those people who are escaping poverty and countries with high unemployment. This is accompanied by problems of  labor exploitation and difficulties arising from the integration of guest workers into foreign lands. Also friction can emerge from the competition for jobs and resources such as housing, between local populations and the migrants.

There are many other problems relating to the planet wide economic integration, but it is beyond the scope of this article to go into all of these in any depth. A brief list of these issues might include things like unfair trade practices, tariffs, quotas and government subsidies.

The Global Conspiracy and Potential World Tyranny:

We'll now talk about another major issue in relation to the Coming One World Order. It concerns the distinct possibility that all of humanity is being brought together into an all encompassing and planet wide tyranny. This is a serious problem if the entire human race is brought under the control of a tiny self serving minority at the expense of individual freedoms and the greater good of the majority. The modern economic system is one where the rich tend to become even richer and further consolidate and extend their economic power through the exercising of political power. In a world where political power is increasingly self serving, gained through financial power and used for financial gain, then certainly it is true that economic power also buys political power. It would appear that we are perhaps heading towards a corrupt One world tyranny, headed by a dynastic elite, who may one day have total control over the Political, Judicial, Economic, Law enforcement and Military institutions of the entire World; perhaps even key Religious ones as well.

This may seem the stuff of conspiracy theories but without a doubt economic and political advantage is gained through unscrupulous and devious means which have to be kept secret from the wider public. For example, through the creation of wars accompanied by lucrative sale of arms and/or financing of these conflicts; through the over throw of foreign governments followed by the installation of 'friendly' regimes and also through the formation of secret societies and cabals which serve the interests of its members at the expense of non members and the common good. However it is true that a part of the human makeup is a certain fixation on power, influence and status. And certainly humans spend a lot of time, energy and resources to come up with ways and means to gain power over other humans. So if we take this human tendency, extrapolate it to a global scale and take it to its logical conclusion, then it is not unreasonable to conjecture that there are those who, if given the opportunity, would like to rule the World. Also given that the World is gradually becoming one economically and politically integrated unit, together with all the ingenious, corrupt and conspiratorial means through which power may be obtained, extended and consolidated; then an evil self serving world tyranny is definitely a distinct possibility.