How has the world gone to sh*t recently?
In terms of poverty rates, standard of living, violent crime, and many other key measures, the world is the best it has ever been, and is continuing to improve, literally every day.
I know it's hard to believe with the headlines we get, but this is the truth.
Doesn't mean we should rest, the situation is far from ideal, but it's important people know this, as it seems most actually don't.
The world's always been "going to sh*t" it's just that very generation gets a news flavour for their turds.
There's a doco series on TV at the mo about the 70's and its kinda interesting to watch because in many ways nothing has changed: we seem to be stuck in a continual cycle and have been so for the last gosh knows how many thousands of years,
Anyhow in this 70's doco there's hate and war, there are young folk rallying against the establishment, there are people saying the end is nigh, there are people saying a new era is starting, there are good times, bad times, causes to fight for, issues that are divisive. There was a US President everyone hated and so on.
I found it interesting because it really wasn't that different from 2018
It would appear that human nature has remained pretty constant no matter how advanced technology gets
The world has not been going to shark, it's improving every year, mainly thanks to globalisation, we currently live in the most peaceful and affluent time in a very long time.
I think we're lucky enough to be living in what is most likely the peak of humanity.
Yes but that depends how you gauge progress.
For example is progress measured by the invention of super slick technology (AI) or is progress a world where everyone has a place to live and food to eat?
If its the former then yes we have progress however if it is the latter then no we are not progressing or if we are it is only by a small amount.
Some people think sending folk to Mars is progress where as I think thats a waste of money, time and resources that could be better spent on earthly issues.
Also, why are you such a fan of globalisation? Thanks to globalisation workers in the 3rd world are exploited by corporations who then go on to make huge profits by selling the goods to 1st world consumers at outrageous prices. Is that how progress looks?
As I said "But even then in the last 25 years extreme poverty has fallen from 50% to 10%"
There is technological progress, there is progress of peace, and there is also humanitarian progress. A smaller percentage of people are starving than ever before.
I like globalisation because it has prevented us from having major wars. Nationalism breeds conventional war, if we get rid of borders then we don't fight on the same scale. It's no coincidence that Europe was in a state of perpetual war before globalisation started in earnest in 1947 and has had it's most peaceful period since then.
Corporations were using slave and cheap labor long before globalisation and the free trade of knowledge and information helps with other countries own democratic and humanitarian ambitions.
Personally, as I said, I think the idea of nation states is past it's used by date and completely redundant. I'd like to see a borderless world in my lifetime.
