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| Do you think that mankind is living in its last days? |
Dark_Crow |
03/16/07 |
I do. Ever since the beginning of time, every form of life has faced challenges that threatened its survival.
For every new problem that our technology or inventions have created, mankind has somehow managed to develop another form of technology or ability to fix the problem. Up until now, that is.
In my humble opinion, man has reached a turning point. Unlike any time in history before, we are now capable of creating global disaster or chaos on an unprecedented scale.
Nuclear weapons are a prime example. We have reached the point were we are able to create more problems than we could ever possibly be able to fix.
In the past, all wars and battles were localized. By this, I mean that the effects of a war usually stayed within a certain region. If a war broke out in africa, people living in France would most likely be unaffected.
This, however, is no longer the case. With the push of just a few different buttons, countries are now capable of destroying a large percentage of the earth's population living thousands of miles away.
In conclusion, I give mankind no more than 500 years to live. People, today are all concerned about fixing Global warming, yet an even more immanent issue threatens us today. I personally do not think that mankind will be around long enough to see the negative affects of global warming. By that time, a huge portion of the earth will be unihabitable due to high levels of radition, or something such as that.
In addition, Terrorism is a new enemy, of which we are poorly equipped to deal with. Terrorism is on the rise. New epedemics(sp?) such as AIDS are still at record levels, and new strains of deadly diseases are popping up everyday.
To be sure, there have been many times in the past in which people thought that doomsday was knocking at the door (such as the Cold War era, etc). However, technology has made the world a more dangerous place to live with each passing day. And it will only get worse, at an increasingly faster pace.
So, what do YOU think? Do you really think that mankind will be around to witness the next Millenium?
.....and that, is my thought-of-the-week.
I came across this and wondered what your reaction might be.
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Clarification/Follow-up by MarySusan on 03/16/07 7:22 pm:
What about the air, Jim.? It is already filthy over parts of China and elsewhere nearby. People wear masks. *Quality of Life*
Clarification/Follow-up by Jim.McGinness on 03/16/07 7:48 pm:
Yes, MarySusan, there is a lot of pollution in the air in a lot of China. The open question is whether or not China can get rich enough, fast enough, to be able to afford to fix their pollution problems. The US and Europe had their most serious air and water quality problems a few decades ago -- prosperity allowed great improvements (not to say that everything is perfect now, but it is decidedly better).
Clarification/Follow-up by tonyrey on 03/17/07 10:34 am:
DC,
Darwinists believe human beings are more intelligent than other species solely because it gives them a greater chance of survival yet they now pose a threat not only to themselves but all life on this planet. From the Darwinist's point of view a high IQ is a disadvantage rather than an asset. The ultimate outcome of evolution may well be not adaptation to the environment but destruction of the environment!
There is clearly a flaw in the argument that the environment alone determines development. Living organisms are not simply cogs in a machine but are teleonomic (Jacques Monod's expression), i.e. goal-seeking. How such entities emerged from inanimate molecules requires a more adequate explanation than a "fortuitous concourse of atoms".
The upshot is that a mechanist view of life is untenable. Whether or not human beings become extinct and make this planet uninhabitable does not affect the value and importance of each individual - which entail more than biological facts. There is far more to life than physical survival...
Clarification/Follow-up by Jim.McGinness on 03/18/07 5:34 am:
When I read the title to this question, I had the initial impression that you might be speaking of the Christian prophetic millennialist question. In some ways, it's easier to answer the question of whether today's events match the prophesy than to make precise predictions about the eventual fate of humanity.
A few months ago, the recommendation by Stephen Hawking that mankind had better figure out how to get out into space and live on other planets was brought up here on Answerway. To some people, this apparently was ridiculous.
There appear to have been several mass extinction events in earth's past, but extinctions of individual species occur in the regular course of things, mostly because aspects of the environment are always changing.
So who is the mystery writer whose concerns you have posted for us here? I didn't find anything when I did a web search.
Clarification/Follow-up by MarySusan on 03/18/07 7:57 am:
It reads like a college student posting on a Philosophy Board. Clarification/Follow-up by Dark_Crow on 03/18/07 3:56 pm:
MarySusan, it is my best guess, you are correct.
I agree Jim, the question of whether or not current affairs match Biblical prophecy is more likely to be answered than making new future predictions.
What I posted is from the Administrator at the new philosophy forums site I referenced in a previous post.
My thought about the post is best reflected by a quote from Ken:
The greatest danger of abstract thinking, as we all know, is that it may rise so far above particularities that it loses contact with them, and we may find ourselves indulging in the abstract and quite literally not knowing what we are talking about.
Clarification/Follow-up by MarySusan on 03/18/07 8:59 pm:
Crow, but your quote from Ken...that is what I think of the discussions of God Believers. I listen/read, but they are talking about nothing much, and loving the sound of their own voice/typing.
I wish Ken would deign to return.
What if we all unite to do better?
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