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I read a quote somewhere and I'll try to find it but to paraphrase it:
"No idustrialized civilization has ever lasted for more than 100 years." Figure around 1920 - 2020 Think about it!
I am beginning to believe that the Iraq war is but the opening gambit in what will eventually become a world power struggle for oil and influence.
That's it. I'm moving back to the east side. Blue Ash never had these problems... [img]wink.gif[/img]
When you think about it we live in perilous times and always have. Granted, in times past conflicts and weather patterns didn't have as much global scrutiny but existed nonetheless. Did it matter to someone who lived in a village wiped out by Ghengis Khan that it was just a local conflict? no it ended "their world" as they knew it. Did it matter in WWI soldiers died in the thousands from poison gas and not a nuclear detonation? It was still a horrible way to die I understand. One year (I don't rememebr which one) there was no summer in North America or Europe, it snowed every motnh that year. A lot of people starved. I think we tend to see the world in finite and static terms as "this is the way it is and is supposed to be" while in fact all conditions are transitional and we have had good years and bad years, periods of relative geological and atmospheric calm and disastrous weather conditions and events. Earthquakes have destroyed entire cities and on the other side of the world life was no different that day. In other words, the gloom and doom we hear so much about is nothing new. It's just new to US.
GL,
So if I understand you right, what you're saying is that this has been happening for centuries but we're just now reporting on it??
The media certainly plays up every bad story they can because it SELLS. Conflict and power struggles are simply part of human nature. So yes, it has always been going on. We just get bombarded by it more now than ever before. Imagine how much panic WWI and WWII casualties would have induced state side if they had had instant access via the internet and television like we have now. It would have altered the outcome of our involvement. As it was there were newspaper headlines and radio reports and news reels at the theater, but it wasn't constantly in people's faces like it is now. You read it or heard about it and went on with your routine, your daily life. Now it is part of our routine.
<font color="#000002" size="1">[ March 19, 2004 10:28 AM: Message edited by: G L ]</font>
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">The United States entered into the Industrial Age as a result of the Civil War Jumper, so make that 1870-1970. Looks like we are already 34 years on borrowed time by that theory...Quote:
Originally posted by Jumper69:
I read a quote somewhere and I'll try to find it but to paraphrase it:
"No idustrialized civilization has ever lasted for more than 100 years." Figure around 1920 - 2020 Think about it!
I am beginning to believe that the Iraq war is but the opening gambit in what will eventually become a world power struggle for oil and influence.
That's it. I'm moving back to the east side. Blue Ash never had these problems... [img]wink.gif[/img]
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I think GL is right. Prior to internet access, I spent very little time listening to or watching the "news".Quote:
Originally posted by Jumper69:
GL,
So if I understand you right, what you're saying is that this has been happening for centuries but we're just now reporting on it??
Actually GL you are right and wrong.
The industrial revolution did start in the 19th century but the sources of power were coal, steam, water, etc.
In the 20th century when the automobile was developed did we start to use oil. So figure 1910 to 2010.
Your thinking and thus your arguments GL are totally inside the box. You say that this kind of thing has been going on for eons. I agree. But try to think outside the box for just one second and try to imagine what this world will be like with oil and all its derivitive products financially out of reach for almost all of earth's people.
As for the internet making information available that once was not; that's a double edged sword I think.
I'm glad I'm able to find out what is going on in the world.
In response to Jumper's original thread, as I have posted many times before, they ain't a whole lot that we do that doesn't involve oil. After water, food, and air, it is probably the most essential resource we have. And granted, unlike those three, there is only a finite amount, and we most certainly need to develop alternatives. But I'm not gonna grip too much; not that I believe in the false god of technology, but the fact is, we have come so far. Take computers, for example. They are a million times more powerful than their ancestors of 30-40 years ago, yet they use about 1/1000th of the energy. Same for TVs; remember those old console TVs that you turned on and could go out and look at your electric meter being drained? I think we always need to explore alternatives, but I believe we will do so.
Now, as for the rest of the thread, which Gae hijacked into the end of the world......GL is right in that we are always in danger. One big asteroid could solve our problems in a heartbeat (that danger has existed since the beginning of time). THanks to nuclear weapons, we have the capability to do it ourselves. There are all sorts of bad things that can happen.
On the other hand, man has survived for quite sometime. And life on the planet much longer, despite all the other crap that has happened. I;m not trying to go Star Trek on anyone here, but I can't stand all this negativity. Not now. Not with UK about to win their 8th national title. God almighty people LIGHTEN UP [img]wink.gif[/img]
"But try to think outside the box for just one second and try to imagine what this world will be like with oil and all its derivitive products financially out of reach for almost all of earth's people."
I have enough anxiety in my day to day life trying to reach goals and stay afloat without delving too deeply into issues over which I have no control. It reminds me of thinking about what would it be like to be told you have cancer and have only 6 mos to live or if told you were going blind. If I want to maintain my present levels of sanity I prefer to not think too much about such things and deal with it if and when it happens.
and what about this threat, not a damned thing ANYONE could do about this if/when it happens:
http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/space/0...oid.blindside/
but I'm not going to think about it anymore than I have to.....