Futudirection for Humanity? (was Don Davis article)

Personally,I don't consider it pessimism as much as a finger pointing
to an area of vulnerability/opportunity.
I agree with you as to the direction 'man' is taking. Although there
have been great strides in the arts and sciences, they have been made
by a limited number of people, a cadre, if you will, of people
seperate from the mainstream. The general population has for years
been "dunbing down" as someone said, and if we continue to ignore this
process we are going to pay for it in the long run.
I am amazed at the technical and scientific progress we have made. The
possibility of carbon nanotubes stretching from here to a sixty odd
thousand mile space anchor, hydroponic agriculture, nanomachines, and
so many more that give promise to a brighter future. For some. Too
many people around the world have been taught to distrust "science"
and "Progress" as new ways to keep the poor, poor.
We have a lot of social engineering to do to allow these people a
sight of what their world could be like if they remove their blinders
and look at the world in a new light.
It is NOT up to them to learn but up to us to teach. Very few people
are able to pull themselves out of a mudhole by grabbing their own
arms and pulling. Those who are not stuck in the mud of ignorance and
disbelief have an obligation to help them out.
Enough sermonizing.
jim

--- In spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com, sraj wrote:
>
> In order to figure out what is wrong with western civilization, or
eastern
> civilization, or whatever, we will have to figure out how a baby,
one year
> old ( a product of raw nature, not that of any civilization ) is
converted
> into an inferior product after ten to fifteen years of education,
and in
> general rubbing shoulders with what we call civilization.
>
> This does not happen with any other creature in Nature. A soaring
eagle, a
> striking snake, a gracefully gliding dolphin, a butterfly, have all
lived up