THE RISE OF THE FAR RIGHT OR IS IT . . . REICH?

 

THE RISE OF THE FAR RIGHT OR IS IT . . . REICH?

 

There is a good reason why I don’t like isms.

 

The extremist far right is once more making inroads, not only in America, but in other places around the world as well, and one that is making a worrying comeback is the nationalist AFD party in Germany.  Waxing about a glorious resurrection of Germany.  The same old song saying is playing again and the refrains are so similar.  People on the extreme right know what they don’t like but are at a total loss how to fix things.  Therefore . . . lay blame, accuse and single out an easy target.  They are not blaming the Jews this time, not yet anyway, but that may change if they continue to make inroads into German politics.  Chants of USA, USA in the Reichstag does not indicate that they actually support the politics of Trump, but they love his tactics.  His antics.  This is the resurrection of a new Nazi Germany and they are once more emboldened by the tactics of rightwing, white, supremacist power.  Lie, fabricate, accuse, sue, imprison, deport, do whatever it takes to rile up the nation and direct their anger and frustration to easy targets.

Find a target.  Direct the anger.

This time around their anger is directed at the so-called Gastarbeiter.  Loosely translated, guest workers, supposedly temporary to relieve labor shortages and basically cheap labor hired to do all the dirty work and the low-paying jobs ethnic Germans no longer apply for or are eager to fill.  Temporary often turns into permanent when the labor picture doesn’t change and of course, we can’t deny them the right to have a life, which includes children, housing, education and basic access to essential services.  When the economy starts to sour and color takes over from the desired white, all of a sudden the hackles are raised. 

Rightwing political demagogues know how to rile up a crowd.  Cater to base feelings and emotions and look no further than America under Trump on how to ignite the psychic of a nation into a renewed sense of fevered nationalism.  Those of you familiar with my work know how I dread isms.  All isms are narrow minded in scope and concentrate on narrow minded issues and solutions.  Far right isms frighten me the most because their dreamscape includes the justification of random arrests and deportations, shutting down anything they don’t like, including the press; they support mock trials and lawsuits, discrimination and persecution, and their sorry list of grievances only grows as time passes.  The far right will stop at nothing and as a student of history I know that it never ends well.

Fuel the fire and keep adding.

The fact that Trump and company haven’t solved a single issue barely puts a dent in public support or in their litany of trumped up grievances, programs and initiatives: from illegals to trade and everything in between.  Promising a lot and delivering very little.  I have written about the similarities between Trump and Hitler before and the scenarios are eerily similar and scary.  Trump and company have been the architects of a rise in global anxiety, promoting unrest and distortion, using threats, bullying, sanctions, tariffs, violence and even starting a brand new war labelled as a minor scuffle.  Trump and company have taken a wrecking ball to livelihoods and long established relationships and agreements.

No morals.  No ethics.  It is all about power.

I am more concerned about rightwing extremists than leftwing.  The left tends to be more focused on ideology and a world that is nice and egalitarian.  A bit naïve as human nature doesn’t follow this wished for pattern of human behavior.  We’re a rather combustible entity when it comes to human emotions and a wildly out-of-control imagination when fired up by anger and resentment.  We’re gullible, easily influenced and manipulated.  The uptick in German extreme politics—the left did well in Berlin—is a sure sign that you can’t control the hearts and minds of people.  Despite the horrific events of two world wars—both instigated by Germany and leading to defeat, a horrendous loss of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars in damages to cities and infrastructures—they are once more flirting with a repeat.

It is the loss of our humanity we should fear the most.

Rightwing extremism is all about exclusion, laying blame, vengeful and trampling the rights of minorities and vilifying everything they don’t like.  They hate dialogue, consultation and above all, democracy.  They accuse all people who favor democracy as the best way moving forward, as weak-kneed, indecisive and incapable of making up their minds about what they call—the tough decisions needed to be made to straighten things out.  The ‘thing’ thingy is never well defined and rarely based on fact.

Selective censorship of the press, do away with due process and above all, do away with the opposition.  One party, one leader.  And people like Putin get elected over and over again because there are no opposition parties on the ballot and their leaders are either in jail or conveniently killed.  Rightwing extremists believe that their brand of violence is justified and necessary.  Killing narco-terrorists (new word).  Islamic radicals.  Invent an enemy if necessary.  Look at Trump and company harping about a Canada that is standing up for its sovereignty.  How dare they oppose what we have in mind for them!  They’re nasty.  They’re bad.  Excuse me . . . Canada!!!

We don’t make deals with a bully who wants to rob us blind and on top of that he expects us to say thank you.  He may be bending over for Putin, but we’re not Putin!  As a proud Canadian I had to insert this bit of venting.  Even I get frustrated by bullshit politics.

There is a good reason as to why they’re here.

Do bear in mind that people who employ illegals (the people Trump wants to deport) do it for a good reason: cheap labor, avoid scrutiny and taxation and paying for benefits.  Rich, corrupt people tend to be Republicans as most Democrats respect the law and human rights.  The problem Trump is running into when it comes to dealing with illegals is two-fold.  Deportation is far from easy, costly and labor intensive and it is intensified when not a single nation is eager to take in the deported.  On top of that you will have to put up with the under-the-table lobbying from all those benefitting from their cheap labor and the fact that white Americans are not willing to do these jobs for the same low wages.

Beware of adults behaving like out-of-control children.

Trump and company are starting to resemble a push and shoving match at a children’s playground.  That is the level of IQ we’re dealing with.  Sadly it is inspiring others around the world to act in a similar manner.  It’s that monkey thing (monkey see, monkey do). 

For decades the German people have turned their backs on fascism and the state terror it unleashed and now it looks that once more they are willing to embrace the same.  The scapegoats for now are people of color and those imported as cheap labor and we’re only steps away to a return of the ‘goose stepping’ and Nazi salutes.  Watch for a comeback of the black uniforms and security services like ICE to randomly pick up undesirables—I purposely inserted this word because I know that it will make a comeback as well.    Deutschland über alles will once more become the rallying cry, a surge for a racially pure, white Germany.  Hitler made all kinds of promises on his rise to power, including respecting human rights, and broke all of them.  Sounds familiar! 

Prey on the gullible and cater to the insufferable whiners.

When people are made to feel that their nation is running out of options—and the undercurrents are there—inflation, job losses, income loss, lack of services, huge debt levels—it is so easy for the worst political elements in society to take advantage of the mood and going out of their way to throw fuel on the fire.

Trump is a needy, narcissistic buffoon, but he resonates with all the people who want to lay blame, who want to find fault, who want to lash out.  If Trump can be ignorant, selfish, lie and lay blame, so can they. 

Ouch, another article that fits in nicely with Energy & Origin and where we are headed and why.  Read it, buy it and pass it on.

It is extremely sad to see Germany about to repeat the mistakes made by the individuals instrumental in starting two devastating world wars this past century.  All it takes is one bad, determined apple to lead the entire nation astray.  For those of you who wonder why so many people are eager to follow a demagogue, read my blog articles.  It is all there.

Feel free to comment or share.

Breaking news:  Trump has just announced that he is going to change the name of his principal residence in Florida:  “The time has come to change the name Mar-a-Lago to something more fitting.  I mean, it’s not bad, but I have a better name, to better reflect my persona as the current owner.  I like to put my own stamp on things.  From now on it will be called Man-I-lie-o.  It’s going to be huge.  Don’t forget to write about it, the non-fakers that is.”

THE AI WE FEAR IS THE AI THAT CAN SHUT EVERYTHING DOWN

 

THE AI WE FEAR IS THE AI THAT CAN SHUT EVERYTHING DOWN

It is all about connectivity.

Leave it to the sci-fi writers to come up with the scariest possible AI scenarios and I can guarantee that it will include self-replicating, self-energizing, totally autonomous entities capable of neutralizing all human threats.  A bored AI looking around a world devoid of humans and wondering what to do next.  Well, we haven’t gone that far yet and at the moment all it takes is unplugging it to shut it down.  But wait, AI has been around for a long time, they are called computers and wireless devices and all the electronic wizardry that runs and controls almost everything humans rely upon in a world full of artifice and creature comforts.  We’re used to everything operating just fine and if it doesn’t, someone will fix it in a jiffy.  There is a reason why suddenly everybody is up in arms about AI and it simply is a matter of connectivity.

 

Oops, it’s no longer a matter of simply turning it off!

In the dying days of World War II America dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to bring about a final end to a global conflict that had killed tens of millions, injured many more and destroyed major cities and infrastructures.  The world went kind of nuclear ballistic for decades.  The fear of total global disintegration appeared all too real.  A new threat is replacing the nuclear option and it is much more insidious.  It is not easy to build a nuclear bomb and not everyone has access to the materials needed or the physicists who will build and design it.  A complicated business that also requires a complicated infrastructure and delivery systems.  Something few nations can afford or are allowed to!  A bit of a status quo has developed.  Use it and risk to be annihilated in a tit for tat scenario and everybody loses.

AI going rogue.  It is powerful and fast.  It is already everywhere.

The AI that all world leaders suddenly fear is the one going rogue.  AI can be purchased, accessed and controlled by anyone and it doesn’t take brilliant physicists to operate.  It comes operation ready and what we should fear the most: AI leaves everything wide open to attack.  A total shutdown.  We have designed operating systems that connect anything to everything.  Used and accessed by nearly everyone on the planet.  Easy-peasy now equals easy to destroy because of AI.

Suddenly we’re vulnerable to an attack that we might not be able to stop.

The big fear—who designs, operates and owns AI, who has access and what is the intent? What will it be used for?  Answer: there is no selective ownership.  Access is wide open.  What we’re trying to do is akin to shutting the gate when the animals have already bolted!

We didn’t set out to design something harmful.  The intent was not to destroy.  The road to hell is paved with good intentions and the human road is littered with them.

Everything connects.  Nothing functions without connectivity.

The problem we face—and it is huge—is connectivity.  We have designed and built a world filled with artifice and it is all connected through networks, networks that are connected, easy to use and access, sensitive and easily disrupted because they connect to everything and everyone.  Almost everything in our lives is now connected by wire or has gone wireless.  We have turned ourselves into a giant electronic circuit board constantly reacting to electronic pulsing and commands, all designed to connect, operate, function and execute.

All is well, that ends well, as long as everything goes according to plan!

AI has moved forward with leaps and bounds and it is the speed and capabilities that terrify.  AI can now destroy all these sensitive networks in the blink of an eye.  It can move faster than we can to stop attacks.  Damage inflicted can be widespread and anonymous.  The culprits won’t leave a calling card behind.  And if pure malice is involved, watch out!

If AI can sabotage and destroy all our sensitive networks, all dependent on connectivity to work seamlessly, and sever those connections, it can bring everything to a standstill: electricity, lights, heat, water, sewage, transportation.  You name it.  Everything that functions and operates electronically and wirelessly.  Just about everything!

The vulnerability of connectivity.

AI in the wrong hands is now the biggest fear.  It is already used by everyone.  Private corporations, governments, and of course by anyone with criminal intent.  Define going rogue?  Define criminal?  Who decides rogue?

Our biggest concern is not AI, but AI used by rogue and hostile elements (including rogue nations) to wreak havoc, to hack, steal, disrupt and extort.  We have created a digital world that is vulnerable to disruption and attack.  It has the ability to literally destroy our world by shutting everything down that requires connectivity.  We have built it.  We totally depend on it to function optimally.  And securely!

Yet another example of Energy & Origin and where we’re headed.

You can use nuclear energy for power or destruction.  Our human intelligence is unscrupulous and it is exhibited in everything we do: power, control, exploitation and dominance.  I have written about this extensively in Behaving Badly and in Energy & Origin.  From computers to the internet and space-based satellites, all designed with the best intent in mind—and they are magnificent accomplishments—are now biting us in the ass.  It is all about a connectivity that everybody uses and depends upon, systems that just about control everything, and that through AI can easily be breached and bring the world as we know it to its knees. 

Vulnerability through connectivity.

The kind of connectivity that we have built has turned into an AI that can potentially be used against us and shut us down.  It has the potential to kill billions unless an antidote can be found in time to restore power and connectivity.  It will pit AI against AI.  If it can find a cure, it can also find a poison.

We didn’t construct a new weapon.  No.  We created a monster.

The big question:  Have we finely built something that literally has the potential to kill us all because it can shut down everything we have come to depend upon?  Back to medieval times!

You may rightfully deduce that the genie has left the bottle already and if one is familiar with the tale, you know that the genie won’t go back into the bottle!

No answers from me, just some big question marks.  What do you think?

Feel free to comment or share.

The Mirror of the Soul, my latest novel

 

Dear friends and to all my blog followers,

 

My latest novel—The Mirror of the Soul—has just been released by my UK publisher.  With your help and by sharing it on your own media platforms you can turn it into a bestseller.  The cover alone tells a story, but I will include a chapter to pique your interest.  The book is available from Vanguard, platforms like Amazon, in bookstores and through distributors.  It is a wonderful tale and as a writer I am pleased to say that it ticks off all my boxes: fascinating characters, a good flow from start to finish, an exciting ending and a wonderful wind down hinting at more to come.  This is a novel for young adult and adult readers: fantasy fiction, action, adventure and humor.

 

Here is the introduction to the book to whet your appetite!

BEAR LAKE

 

          It all began right here: An idyllic spot, a quaint little cottage built close to the shores of Bear Lake in a pristine, natural setting.  An ideal place I thought for a writer to feel inspired and to get away from all the distractions and the hustle and bustle of city life.  It seemed like the right thing to do.  Quite a few years ago I stumbled accidentally upon this location while hiking through the northern woods.  I fell in love with the undisturbed character of the area and the fact that not a single soul lived anywhere near the lake or the Misty River that borders the plot of land I purchased upon which to build my dream home —a cottage to retire to and a place to write in peace, surrounded by nature.  The Misty River is a rather grand name for a body of water that resembles a meandering, shallow creek in the summertime.  But it really lives up to its name because on a cold morning a mystical fog lingers around its banks until the heat of the morning sun finally dissipates the last lingering shards to reveal a forest that is absolutely breathtaking.  I was here for the very first time while camping on its shores and the thought struck me: One day I would like to build a cottage here and enjoy the sunsets over Bear Lake and the enchanting fog that gave the Misty River its name.  This was to become my magical getaway place and little did I know at the time that a totally different kind of magic would present itself as well; a kind of magic that I accidentally provoked by building my cottage right on top of the main door of the home of one of the most wondrous creatures I have ever met.  I call him a creature for now for want of a better word.  His name is Pecan and he is what one would call in fairy tales a pixie, or an elf, the tiniest magical creatures known to exist.  He is a whisper of a person, so small that you can barely see him with the naked eye.  Pixies are the stuff of fairytales and folklore and are said to be rare and elusive, part of our imagined world, replete with hobbits and dwarfs, elves and trolls, wizards and witches; all of them creatures of  make-believe.  Or so I thought.  There were two reasons why we met.  First of all, Pecan was incensed by my audacity to build my cottage right on the spot where he had lived for hundreds of years blocking his front door in the process.  Secondly, while intent on giving me a good scolding and vent his displeasure, he had become intrigued by the book I was working on.  The book was titled—The Search for the Secret Herb—and the name of the wizard in the story was Boldamor.      

       Boldamor also happened to be the name of a real wizard who happened to be Pecan’s best friend.  Talk about coincidence!  The book I was working on fascinated Pecan so much that, rather than making my life miserable—which pixies are known to do—by using trickery and pranks—and thus punishing me for nearly destroying his home—he decided to make my acquaintance instead.  And so, one thing led to another.  I like to think that we have become friends in the process and that there was a curiosity on both sides which led to the adventure you’re about to read.  Pecan introduced me to the world beyond, a world that exists next to our world, connected by a tiny passage that happened to be on Bear Lake.  I can’t wait for you to read all about it.  It was a hair raising and dangerous adventure and the outcome was far from certain.

Please share it with family and friends and all your contacts.  It is a wonderful novel that deserves a wide audience.

 

ECO-FATIGUE

 

ECO-FATIGUE

The canary in the coalmine.

Our planet is struggling.

What it cannot say in words or writing it is declaiming loudly in how it feels, looks, and how it behaves!  Planet Earth is tired, worn out and abused and the neglect is visible all around us.  Throughout billions of years it has shown a remarkable ability to bounce back from disaster, some apocalyptic in nature and lasting millions of years.  It can handle pure physical disasters and its natural restorative powers are impressive.  What we have been throwing at the planet, and especially these past centuries, goes well beyond its ability to recover.  We have polluted the air, ground and water.  Nearly every ecosystem on the planet has been exploited and desecrated to such an extent that a recovery is no longer possible.  Our planet is massively overpopulated by our species and the ability to sustain and meet the needs of over 8 billion people is in serious jeopardy.  Our reaction to global warming and climate change is one of dismay, anger, disbelief and ignorance.

Earth reacts to what we do to it.

Planet Earth is not a living entity but simply a mass of atoms.  No emotions are involved.  When it comes to global warming for instance it simply reacts with physics to rising temperatures.  Turn up the heat and you turn up the energy and the release will be spectacular.  Yes, past geo-physical data show that throughout the planet’s history there have been millennia of even hotter temperatures.  The big difference.  It took hundreds or thousands of years for temperatures to gradually rise and lifeforms had time to adapt.  There were also no humans present and therefore no interpretations of cause and impact.  What we have done has taken place in a matter of one century of explosive human development.  No time for adaptation.

Failing ecosystems.

Negative developments create negative energy and we’re sharing the negative consequences not with millions, but with billions.  A do-or-die reality will supersede all our economic models and strategies and our minds will be made up for us.  Question: will we persist or resist?  The answer to that one is simple.  It is in our nature to ignore problematic issues and deceive ourselves with hope.  We have set in motion economic systems and strategies that are intrusive and energy intensive.  Humanity has surrounded itself with a level of artifice that has spun out of control as our dependency grows by leaps and bounds.  We don’t know how to turn things off or how to turn them around: trade, political differences and tensions, climate change and global warming, the destruction of ecosystems, widespread poverty and unrest, food insecurity, resource depletion, pollution and toxins leaching into our water, land and air.

Nothing to be proud of.

By 2050, going by the current rate of the dumping of plastics in our oceans, they will contain more plastic than fish.  Since two-thirds of our planet is covered by water, and food and water are the two mainstays to keep us alive, that is indeed a worrying sign.  Why mention this?  It is the size and scope and the damage inflicted on our oceans that are reflective to what we’re doing to everything on land.  We live on land and we share it with millions of other species.  Without the abundance of diversity and symbiosis we will soon resemble a parched, dried up landscape devoid of life.

Eco-fatigue is all about a planet no longer capable of restoration and rejuvenation.  We are impacting with a force that is no longer sustainable and the planet is buckling under from a human assault that is relentless.  Pure physics.  Unleash enough negative energy and suffer the consequences.  We’re up against an angry planet that has seen its surface and depths battered, depleted and destroyed.  Global warming and climate change—although important—are but small potatoes when compared to all the negativity we’re up against. 

As a writer, a student of philosophy, history and the humanities I am an observer and I interpret what I see.  I don’t have a crystal ball, but I am worried as to where we are headed.  It is the reason why I wrote Energy & Origin.  It not only explains our origin, but where we are headed and why.  Buy it, read it, and pass it on.

It is available on KDP Amazon.ca:  Energy & Origin by W.M.A Bes

Feel free to share or comment.

As a writer I am well aware of the fact that nothing I write will ever make a difference.  If on the other hand I can encourage people to change for the better, respecting each other and the planet, than all my efforts are worthwhile.  And it is the reason why I write.  Therefore, pass it on.  Subscribe to my blog and stay informed.

 

 

     

A WAKE UP CALL

 

A WAKE UP CALL

There is no greater fool than the fool who fools himself.

 

Deception has always loomed large in our lives.  Lying and deceiving characterizes our species more so than any other in the natural world.  Nothing else comes even close.  We use it to gain power and control and exercise supremacy over others, even from within.  Those with the most to gain also have the most to lose.  When the British Empire reluctantly surrendered the baton of the number one world superpower to the United States, it did so under a new mantle of protection. It became a vassal, rather than a leader, pledging allegiance so that it could ride on the coattails of an emerging economic powerhouse that would lead the world like no other nation has done before in recent history.  This past century America has been at the vanguard of economic developments and strategies that rightfully gave rise to its dominant position and it has spawned talent and innovation like no other.  But those heady days are over and by and large they have been the masters of their own demise.  Listening to the siren songs of others can entice imperial masters to do the strangest things and some of them have been so costly that it has left a former lender of money in the position of turning into one of the world’s biggest debtor nations.  All of it accomplished in record time.

Lavishing praise while turning the tables.

I am not a proponent of conspiracy theories but rather an observer of human traits and characteristics that can lead . . . but can also be led . . . in unexpected directions.  It is the latter where deception plays a role.  If you can’t beat a rising star at its own game, how do you go about achieving its defeat?  America started out with brawn over brain, going out of their way to be the biggest and strongest, financially and militarily.

No other nation has invested as much money in security as the United States.

But somehow the global power game has been turned into American fear and paranoia and it plays out in the dozens of security agencies that employ hundreds of thousands of Americans concerning themselves with the nations’ borders and security.  Electronic eavesdropping, massive intelligence gathering and all with heightened levels of paranoia to justify the trillions of dollars spent annually on intelligence and the military.  Costly.  Funded by tax dollars and adding to a growing mountain of federal debt that has exceeded 40 trillion.  Threats real or imagined or cleverly hyped and manipulated?  Who do they listen to?  Who are they enticed to listen to?  Is their level of paranoia justified?  What are they made to believe?  Who do they believe?

Efforts to undermine a superpower start early.

Exaggerate, exaggerate.  Blow everything out of proportion.

How do you defeat a superpower?  Russia learned to its chagrin that a totalitarian regime is a total failure.  Especially when a government attempts to run the economy.  China wisely changed course and has allowed state sponsored capitalism to intervene and build a booming economy.  China and Russia have been around a lot longer than America.  They have been alternately invaded, occupied, divided and exploited so many times that they have become masters at survival and a fledgling communist Russia was quick to adapt to a new reality: if you can’t beat them at their own game, spy and subvert, steal technology and infiltrate your enemy.  Not only weaken your opponent, but make them invest in their growing paranoia.  Feed it.  Make them believe that the mighty Russian bear is out to get them.  Give them an enemy.  Give them a cause.  Ditto for China.  Lay it on thick!  And they are not the only players!  The rest of the world is catching on, waiting patiently for the American eagle to fall from its perch.  And as for as blowing things out of proportion, from the lips of Trump it is a never ending stream.

Imperial masters are gullible and vanity is like pixie dust.

America has never been great at playing the long game and has always relied on being able to outsmart an opponent by building up their security services and military might.  England did it.  Huge armies spread out around the world.  A massive colonial administrative network protecting trade and industry.  However, historically the occupied patiently wait for the right moment to get even.  The oppressed fight back.  I have written quite a bit lately about tribal origin and how deep those roots run.  History shows that most tribes end up living back within their original borders.  Either the occupiers leave or the occupied take their lands or nation back.

Blow up their egos.

How have they gone about subverting American supremacy?  Allies and supporters of an emerging empire use their submissive support to extract military and trade protection, buttering up if you will to a superior force.  Entering into alliances requires sensitive diplomatic toes as everyone involved threads carefully around disputes that inevitably will arise.  You want to keep the guy with the big club relatively happy without giving the store away.  Give and take, sometimes a nibble, sometimes a bite.  One time-tested tactic is praise and tribute, letting the superpower know how important their strength is and the superpower responds by increasing their military expenditures, research and development.  The so-called bad guys sharpen the knives of fear and paranoia by feeding into the stories; a prick and a needle here and there, carefully planted tales, the odd attack, followed by an indignant denial.  It entices imperial masters to invest even more money into building up their might and protective barriers.  The cost of financing a huge military is horrendous, tax dollars wasted on a no-return investment.  The empire gradually drowns itself into a morass of debt.  And when it comes to imperial aspirations; you’re either all in, or all out.  The wise stay out.  Let the other guy dig the holes.

Misplaced hubris kills all history lessons.

In America the sad financial horror story of empire building is unfolding like a badly written script and Trump and company are hastening the demise through bad foreign policies and escapades and alienating themselves from their allies as well.  Just when they need all the support they can get, they are cutting themselves off with isolationist policies.  The former USSR bankrupted itself because of a totalitarian approach to governing and that included trying to run the economy.  It appears that Trump and company are reaching for a similar approach.  Sanctions, tariffs, threats, ill-executed military adventures.  All the rest of the world has to do is stand back and watch America implode.

Manipulated to pursue strength through force.

America has been manipulated for decades by targeted, manipulative misdirection.  They shouldn’t feel bad.  Blame the conflict model all nations have played for millennia.  Rather than focusing on economic strength at home and abroad they have invested instead in a military and security apparatus that has undermined the financial strength of the nation.  Wealth generation has to come from the private sector based on need and demand.  A hard-working private sector economy generates and provides the kind of tax base that governments need to deliver programs and services.  The military is not an investment, it is a cost factor.  Blowing tax dollars on fancy adventures like “conquering” space and seeing who can build the biggest stick, is not smart either. 

Make them waste tax dollars.

America has allowed itself to be played like a fiddle.  All imperial aspirations carry a hefty price tag and had America been content to be part of a coalition of the likeminded, rather than demanding to play the lead role, it might have moved forward with a more cautious approach and with less hubris.  The American eagle has not aged gracefully.  It is looking worn and tired, with clipped wings, beak and claws.  Trump’s clownery and inappropriate iterations are only rushing the inevitable along.

It is near impossible to reverse the death throes of empire and it will try just about anything: invasions, occupations, economic threats and coercion, sanctions, bans, blockades, tariffs.  The feeble death rattles of a former giant grasping at straws.

No clear successors in sight.

Unfortunately there is no immediate relief in sight and success is about as elusive and stubborn as huge global debt levels that refuse to budge and go away.  We’re not done with playing the imperial game but opportunities are fading globally.  An out-of-control human population with insatiable needs and demands stubbornly resists solutions.  With rising scarcities in energy and resources, it is highly improbable that any new nation will emerge to vie for top spot.  Anyone counting on greater global cooperation as an answer is looking in all the wrong places.  A new enemy has emerged, one of our own making that is upsetting the applecart.  Eco-fatigue

Eco-fatigue will be featured as the next article.

Feel free to comment or share.

wbes6646@gmail.com   

 

ARE WE A TALE WITH A SILVER LINING?

 

ARE WE A TALE WITH A SILVER LINING?

Our initial presence as a species was barely noticeable, but our demise will be spectacular.

Sometimes I like to start an article by throwing out questions that may seem odd at first but which are intended to jumpstart the essence of what I’m writing about.  In my overactive writer’s imagination I often pretend as if I’m starting a discussion with my reader.  Nah, confession time, I do it on purpose, it is actually something I love to do.

Are we really that important?

 One I’d like to start with is the following; why are we always fussing, or is obsessing a better way of phrasing it, about the deeper meaning of life.  Thousands of books and articles have been written about this subject throughout humanity’s history, from divine origin to humans perhaps inhabiting a special and unique place within the universe.  Could it really have started with Adam and Eve?  The opinions expressed are all over the place and most are incredibly hopeful, in our favor that is.  As in extremely positive where it concerns you and me.  A fair bit of hubris is involved in these self-assessments.  We think rather highly of ourselves and of course it’s my intent to throw a monkey wrench in some of that delusional thinking.  It’s what I seem to do when discussing humanity.  But what I like to do is to frame our species within the spectrum of the cosmos, time and probabilities.  How important do we think we are within the near infinity of space and billions and billions of years of celestial fireworks?

What is the purpose of life?  Of all life?

What if I express rather boldly that the essence of all life, including ours, is about propagation and planting the seed of the next generation.  In other words, it’s about survival of the species.  It is how life on our planet has evolved.  All life follows the same basic evolutionary pathways.  As adults of child rearing age we know that kids take up a lot of our time and they’re costly.  On top of that we dedicate the best years of our lives to raising the brats.  Yes, multiple.  Plenty of one-child families, but the bulk tries for more.  Two or more.  What’s the attraction?  Look at all the fun you can have without these toddlers running you off your feet.  From a logical perspective it doesn’t make a lot of sense, yet most of us go for it.  Single one day, playing the field and going to parties and then, boom, tying the knot and before you know it the baby talk starts and before you can say Bob’s your uncle they are filling up the hallways and spare bedrooms with the pit-a-pat of tiny feet, nighttime feedings and sleepless nights.  Once you have them, they’re yours forever.  Running out of people?  Since when should we be concerned about adding to the consumer markets?  Even if half of the world’s population decided to have no kids at all we’re still left with billions.  We’re not exactly faced with extinction, are we?

Why this particular article and topic?  Believe it or not, sometimes I surprise myself as to where my writing is taking me.  It usually starts out with a basic idea and all my writing is based on extensive note taking, but the creative process is not without surprises and once the brain juices start flowing it can take me in unsuspected directions.

We like to surprise ourselves.

In the natural world everything is pretty straightforward, but for some reason our species defies easy answers.  And trust me, we belong to the natural world too, even if we pretend that we don’t.  We, the masses, with our incredible numbers, having surpassed the 8 billion, are proving to be a challenge that is multi-facetted in scope.

I have written extensively about energy and momentum and how it decides the fate of all living species.  Unfortunately our species has deviated sharply from what is the norm in the natural world.  We are literally advancing at the expense of everything that exists on our planet.  Nothing is spared.  A totally parasitic approach that has given us a temporary advantage over all that lives and exist around us.  I have purposely injected and underlined the word temporary.  We somehow have come to believe that we have been given a reprieve or are an exception from the evolutionary pathways that all species follow.  Blame that much dreaded higher intelligence of ours.  Bestowed upon us as a gift by either evolution, creation or intelligent design.  I threw that one in because all three have its fair share of adherents.  A bit further on in this article I will surrender my opinion; it’s evolution and my assessment is not very flattering if any other option is preferred.  

We look good on paper.  Especially the majority of papers we have authored to extoll the virtues of humanity that celebrate our accomplishments and potential.  Our impact and the subsequent consequences are explained in greater detail in my novel Energy & Origin.  It’s time to put a dent in our hubris.  We can’t compare Homo sapiens limited years of existence to the billions of years of evolution that have shaped the natural world.  A natural world that has delivered us a bounty that we have squandered, destroyed and consumed in a blink of cosmic time.  One small example: Oil.  A substance that currently powers our economies and which took over 250 million years to form, we have extracted since 1876—very slowly at first—and we’re now faced with depletion in less than a few decades.  Globally we’re burning through over 90 million barrels daily.

What do we have in common with all other living species on our planet?  We all live for the moment.  It is today that counts.  We even brag that when it comes to oil that we won’t be running out for a while.  A short while anyway.  I won’t see the end of oil but my granddaughter will.  Our concept of time is so delusional and within the greater concept of the universe—where time is of no consequence, because time is a human thing—we’re a mere hiccup.  A cosmic burp.  It’s in our imagination that we travel where no man has gone before—a salute to all the Start Trek fans—in search of other planets that could possibly sustain human beings.  Space fantasies and wishful thinking.  As we blast of into the unknown we won’t encounter department stores, refueling stations and stores that fix and repair broken down rockets.  Terra firma, Mother Earth, this is it and I am reminded of the image of a young boy holding up a sign during a protest and climate rally that read: there is no planet B.  More than likely the sign had been provided by a parent but the lad’s facial expressions indicated that he damn well understood the message.

Turning a blind eye.

We’re not blind.  We’re not stupid and unaware.  Unfortunately evolution has provided us with an intelligence that is incredibly limited.  It has not provided us with an intelligent approach to living and that it is in our best interest to preserve the bounty of nature and protect its ecosystems.  Our excesses are killing us.  The awareness that does exist—there are many dedicated activists--is inconsequential within the bigger picture of energy and momentum that has emerged.  Our daily needs and demands are like a steamroller pulverizing the voices pleading for respect and reason.

What do you subscribe to?

If intelligence is a gift from the gods—apparently there is only one in certain faiths and multiples in others—they most certainly screwed up in a momentous manner.  If we were a mere experiment to see where a slightly higher intelligence would lead us, it most certainly was a spectacular failure, especially if intelligent design was involved, or . . .  if a more positive outcome had been anticipated.  If on the other end the experiment was designed to prove that all superior intelligence is inherently self-destructive, than the experiment was a smashing success.

Evolution however makes a lot more sense because it is designed on what works, even how it forces a species to adapt if it wants to survive adverse and changing circumstances.  It is not about perfection, but about fitting in.  Getting by is the motto of all living species.  No big secret.  When I wrote Energy & Origin based on the impact of energy and momentum, that particular line about all superior intelligence is inherently self-destructive, guided me along to the inevitable conclusion as to where humanity as a species is headed.  We are an anomaly.  No other living species does what we do.  The natural world is not a pleasure ride in an amusement park.  It can be deadly.  Prey and predator.  But there is also a natural balance because it doesn’t behoove any species to wantonly kill and destroy.  We, on the other hand, have done nothing but.  We have used our intelligence to live at the expense of the world around us and we have done so without letup and the pace has only increased with over 8 billion people vying for a slice of the pie.

We’re the odd man out.

I do hope that you realize that within a finite reality our activities and habits are not sustainable.  In Energy & Origin I have explained that a superior use of energy can give a species a distinct advantage over others.  Homo sapiens has used its intelligence to overcome obstacles and challenges that no other species on our planet has been able to equal or surpass.  Our future is looking rather bleak because a change of heart is not in the cards.  Evolution has provided us with opportunities and changes that have come fast and furious.  Some species have never changed, or very little, in millions of years, because they were ideally suited for the environment they inhabited; crocodiles and sharks, certain scorpions and mollusks.  Just to name a few.  In evolution if there is no need to change, why bother?

Therefore the question we should pose is, can we change?  Will we be able to adapt to sudden changes in lifestyles brought on by shortages, conflict, poverty, stagnation, conflict and wars?  I have stated in previous articles that all species are predominantly lazy and the only real challenge is to get by.  We are no different.  Few of us lead and most of us are followers.  Some of the stronger and more aggressive always play a lead role.  A pecking order exists in almost all species, as does the group instinct to protect the species.  The behavioral patterns we follow are as predictable as the sun rising in the morning and they are dominant in all species.  Our overall behaviors mirror that of the natural world from which we came.  Our abilities have given us the impression that somehow we’re different, exempt if you like from the life we share with all other species on our planet.  The only difference is the sad fact that although we can’t leave the natural world behind us, we have come to dominate it to such an extent that we have become our own worst enemy.  You can’t keep coming back to a well that is drying up.  Momentum drives us.  And when it comes to changing!  Will we ever find a lion turning into a vegan?  Or an elephant turning into a carnivore?  Concentrate on the nature of the beast!

Evolution doesn’t do reverse engineering. 

We have not been kind to each other.  We have not been kind to all the lifeforms we share the planet with.  We have been rather disrespectful, neglectful and delinquent.  In a lion troop when faced with hardship the weak and young perish first.  Survival of the troop is all that matters.  What we see happening around the world follows a similar pattern.  Failure is taking place in a large number of nations around the globe, nations that lack the competitive ability and a healthy economy to provide a level of comfort and sustainability that compares to countries that are doing reasonably well in the global economic environment that currently sets the tone and pace.  The fact that so many nations are falling behind is an indication that what works for some, doesn’t work for everybody and it’s the nature of the beast—that will be us—to keep it that way.  The western world isn’t going to pump trillions of dollars into the economies of third world countries in order to bring them up to our standard of living.  It behooves us to remain superior, as in more powerful and profitable.

We’re driven to stay on top.

A dominant species can only remain dominant by acting dominant.  Driven by energy and momentum it doesn’t provide for alternatives.  When it comes to power and control we know that any sign of weakness spells defeat.  The way we react is purely instinctive and predictable.  This is the dichotomy within our species that causes so much friction.  We often talk ‘nice’ but we don’t act nice.  We mean well but constantly answer to that prophetic phrase; the road to hell is paved with good intentions.  The nature of all species is based on strength, not weakness or compassion.  Hello Ukraine.  Hello Gaza.  Hello to all the nations that use their strength and influence to exact power and control.  Do I have to name them?  Do I have to name the individuals calling the shots?

I don’t have a crystal ball, but my entire life has been dedicated to follow the facts and to explore how historically we behave and have behaved.  Sugarcoating our behaviors is something I don’t subscribe to and I do it even less now that I find myself in the twilight of my earthly life.  Looking for a silver lining is typically human and about as relevant as demanding that every story or book ends on a happy note.

As always, feel free to share or comment.  wbes6646@gmail.com

Purchase Energy & Origin on KDP Amazon.ca

And use my full pen name: W.M.A. Bes

It’s an eye opener.  If you’re looking for humor—Yes, I do have a sense of humor—look no further than Mathew, Broderick, Fred, Roger.  Also available on Amazon.ca