A DEFIANT SPECIES
Defiant to the bitter
end! (That will be us, all of us)
The State of the Union address (U.S.A) delivered on February
24/2026 is a typical example of how delusional we have become as a
species. It’s not just the outright lies
and fabrications, the distortion of the true state of the economy and where a
country is headed, it’s about what we want to believe, what we tell each other
to believe. Our entire existence in the
Western hemisphere is kept afloat on a sea of bad debts and no amount of
taxation or tariffs will alleviate the horrendous deficits all nations keep
piling up year after year. We’re moving
ahead with a level of defiance that is absolutely astonishing and mind
boggling. Nations are grasping at straws
to keep a leaking ship afloat. Fifty
years ago we managed to put people on the moon.
Fast forward to today and we’re struggling to put a manned Artemis
rocket into space, not for a landing, but a flyby. With improvements in technologies, materials
and propulsion, why does it appear that we’re starting from scratch once
more? What changed in the interim? Why did we stop fifty years ago?
Defiance in the face of
desperation and that is what this article is all about.
I am not a physicist, but I do know that the exploration of
space with conventional spacecraft is a non-starter to realistically venture
into the universe. The current resources
and methods we use to launch a large rocket into space have not produced a
tangible return on investment, other than scientific progress, improved space
technologies and the bragging rights that we actually went to the moon. Our ability to effectively explore space, to
settle in space and to affordably extract whatever we think is needed to
sustain the human population on Earth, has not produced any tangible results or
prospects. And the expenses keep piling
up and most of it in the form of tax dollars to support an extremely costly
enterprise. Our current technologies
have us spinning our wheels in proverbial space sand.
Looking for a way out,
an escape.
We are throwing billions of dollars at a wistful dream; can
we leave this planet in realistic numbers and settle elsewhere in space? It is our numbers, needs and demands that
have put planet Earth into a state of deep decline and this time around it is
not about who is first and can we do it, but about desperation and looking for
an escape, a way out. Defiance and
desperation are the drivers behind finding alternatives to keep our species
alive and where else can we look at this point in time but at the heavens. For millennia humans have stared up at the
heavens and we have wondered and speculated.
What would it be like to travel up there and explore that seemingly huge
infinity? And then there is the
frustration of knowing that we’re stuck on Earth. Without attempting to put a finer point on
the issue, the acceptance that we’re stuck on this planet has never sat well
with that superior intelligence of ours, fueled by an imagination that knows no
boundaries and for a species for whom pushing the boundaries is an ongoing
obsession. We have never accepted our
finite existence and the fragility of life and all the obstacles all lifeforms
face. An intelligence such as ours has
never been satisfied with a status quo or a fait accompli.
Defiance, not
acceptance, drives us relentlessly onward.
We are in denial when it comes to the sobering reality that
we’re permanently stuck on planet Earth, an uncomfortable fact as we’re well
aware of the detrimental impact of most of our activities and the irreversible
damage we have inflicted. In less than
75 years we have polluted most of our water sources with plastics and micro
plastics. This is but one example of our
disastrous impact and there are hundreds more.
The picture that has emerged as a result is that of a species in
trouble. We’re not reversing, we’re not
pausing and we’re not backing down and in the process we’re denying millions of
species in the natural world a future as well.
I am well aware that at times I must sound like a broken
record (I was brought up in time where vinyl and turntables reigned supreme,
and newspaper and radio were our lifelines to the outside world). However, the uncomfortable realities that
face our species and the entire planet is not something we can afford to
ignore. It has little to do with
wistfully looking back or stubbornly plodding onwards. We are steadfast in our refusal to
acknowledge that none of our activities contribute to the health and welfare of
planet Earth and the millions of lifeforms that depend on it for survival.
This is it!
Our dependency is in denial and we’re resorting to a dizzying
number of excuses to either ignore what is going on around us or deliberately
turn a blind eye. Without letup we
continue to extract, to pollute, to waste, to dig ever deeper holes, to
vanquish species, and to destroy and devour.
And it is all taking place within a finite reality. Not a single one of our species is
contributing anything to the longevity, health and welfare of our planet. Even the most conscientious amongst us still
consume and are part and parcel of the communities we live in. My writing doesn’t set me apart. I am no different than you are. I am surrounded by the physical realities
that constitute my home and the city I live in.
Growth and progress are killing us and we’re not slowing down. A truly intelligent species would make every
effort to ensure that we protect and preserve the vitality of a planet that has
provided us with opportunity and a lifeline for billions of years. The extinction of our species is a distinct
possibility as we have never tried to fit in.
We’re not stupid. Most of us are
aware how important symbiosis is and that the preservation of eco-systems is
crucial to all life and that includes ours as well. No matter how high we jump, no matter what
kind of excuses we come up with, all of us come and go and there is no everlasting. None of
us get out of this life alive. T.
Williams
We can be forgiven for our earliest sins when we first
emerged as intelligent uprights and we took the first tentative steps in
exploring the world around us. Our
initial ignorance can be forgiven because we were learning and we didn’t know
any better. As Homo ignoramus (sapiens
ought to be reserved for a truly intelligent species only) we set out on a
discovery tour that initially appeared endless in potential and possibilities.
We are a creature of evolution and evolution only works on
what is possible. Creatures can and will
adapt to changing circumstances, but only when circumstances allow it. It doesn’t work on the impossible. Space is too vast and hostile for a fragile
species such as ours to exist. Earth lifeforms are not compatible with a
space based existence.
In my novel—They were like angels—I indulged in the
possibilities of intelligent design and how it might have played a role in how
life on Earth emerged. In it I describe
how technologies such as turning matter into anti-matter, converting humans and
material into light pulses, might be the only logical way to traverse the immensity
of space safely and effectively. This is
fantasy technology and it would require a level of sophistication and energy we
don’t possess. And I have said this
before, all superior intelligence is inherently self-destructive and therefore
any effort to reverse it is futile. Look
at what we have placed the emphasis on in recent decades and the negatives that
have emerged as a result. We don’t stop,
pause or reverse, because that is not how a ‘superior’ mind works or behaves.
As a writer I have never been afraid to state the
obvious. We have an obligation to record
history and our impact as objectively as we can. I don’t serve any paymasters either.
Elect a clown, expect a
circus.
In the State of the Union address in 2026 Trump and company
clearly demonstrated, not only defiance, but how delusional the political
spectrum in the United States has become.
For an intelligent person this was a sickening performance to watch and
listen to. Loose cannons are in charge
of the nation’s economy and future and I will only list one ludicrous example
of how unhinged they have become.
Tariffs replacing income tax?
Not having to pay income tax sounds like a Christmas present that keeps
on giving. The first reality is the
sobering fact that the United States is in debt up to its eyeballs. That debt belong to the masses. We, the people, we are the government. Secondly, replacing income tax and other
nifty ways to collect money, with tariffs, would require a huge and complicated
bureaucracy to administer. In other
words, more government and not less. And
most importantly, think really deep and hard about how this fancy-footing with
tariffs and duties will affect the livelihoods of the average American. I will illustrate the impact of tariffs on
everything with a simple example. If the
price of groceries doubled this is not an issue for wealthy people. Wealthy people may on average be able to
afford more expensive luxuries, but by and large, their eating and spending
habits reflect that of ordinary working people.
Currently almost every taxation model used is prorated. The more you make, the more you
contribute. It is fair and it makes
sense. Not having to pay income tax
would make the wealthy only wealthier and only the poor and the working poor
will carry the burden of keeping governments afloat. Still think that tariffs are a godsend? If Trump and company have their way they will
turn America in a nation of haves and have-nots and the have-nots will be a
sweeping majority and not in a good (decision making) sense.
The fact that tariffs are killing jobs and prosperity doesn’t
deter this coterie of crackpots because they can’t wait to fill their pockets
with ill-gotten gains. We have turned
into a defiant species engaged in a delusional race against the doomsday clock
that it is edging up to midnight. As a
non-religious person I feel it is still appropriate for me to exclaim in
disbelief and horror, “God, give me strength!”
Feel free to comment of share. I enjoy your feedback and remember that ours
is a journey we share. We need to keep
the dialogue going in a respectful and open manner.
Purchase my novel Energy & Origin, available on KDP
Amazon.ca
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