What is your concept of a better world?
Venus seems so far away, empty coffers make the most noise
Every one, it seems, wants to make the world better. Those few uncultured souls who express no overpowering desire to make the world a better place are viewed as immoral throwbacks without a shred of decency. We look upon those generous philanthropists who are constantly calling our attention to their unselfish desire to improve the world as champions of our own need to have a kinder, gentler world. If those wonderful world better makers should achieve their goals of making the world better, then the world would become by definition better for everyone, including our own small selves.
Well, maybe and maybe not. It all depends.
What exactly it depends on is exactly what is meant in practical terms by making the world better. If my idea of making the world better includes my winning the lottery and being set financially with more money than I shall ever know what to do with, that is likely not a concept of a better world that is shared by many other people. Their concept of a better world is that they should win the lottery. Right away you perceive there is a basic conflict at work here in the perception of a perfect world. For most Americans as well as most of Europe, making the world better includes oil prices at an acceptable level. Many people and most politicians find it perfectly acceptable to do whatever necessary to keep oil prices in line, including questionable support for various Middle Eastern regimes that boast a less than stellar record with the dealings with their own citizens. One of the consequences of the attempts to control oil prices by any convenient means available was the loss of two New York skyscrapers and extensive damage to the pentagon on September eleven. It can be safely constructed that Nine Eleven did not rank high toward making a better world for any one with the likely exception of Osama bin Laden.
Any time you hear someone grandly proclaiming they want to make the world better, it becomes prudent to inquire how exactly they plan to go about making the world better and for whom. There have been administrations in Washington who believe the world is in such poor shape that any half baked program is justified. Such people were known to insist any action, even if it was the wrong action, was justified under current conditions. They insisted the American people should just trust them to make the world better, even though they themselves admitted they had no idea the consequences their proposed actions could set in motion.
When you come right down to it, this world is actually about as close to perfection as it is possible for humans to endure. The simple reason for that is that our kind has been adapting to the conditions of this world for millions of years. Oxygen exists in the atmosphere in just about the right proportions for our liking, the temperature is generally hospitable, the soil will provide mostly what we require to eat if we restrain from making pigs of ourselves and, ultimately, if we persist in populating the planet with more of our kind than is sustainable, our numbers will be cut back to a manageable number. The thinning out will likely not be pleasant, but it will be efficient. This world takes care of its own.
So what is to be said of those who insist they should be allowed to make the world a better place? What, we should ask, is their agenda? For the most part, those who set out to make the world better want to create a world that is better for them. They want a world where they consistently win the lottery. They want a world where the price of oil is well within their means of purchase. They want a world in which they are asked for a date by the best looking girl in school, a world where they drive the finest car, a world where they are captain of the champion football team, a world where world leaders come to them for advice, a world where everyone loves them and a world where they can make the honor list without bothering to study. These are people who convince themselves if the world is perfect for them, it will be perfect for everyone else in consequence. If first place is reserved to them, everyone else will be content with runner-up.
There are also the kinds of better world advocates who are content with the status that comes with proclaiming the desire for a better world. They actually desire no special material gain. They have no desire to win the lottery, they have no problem with the price of oil whatever it may be, and they do not lust after the best looking girl in school or the hottest cars. They have little interest in sports and do not yearn to world leadership. Their desires are much more insidious and abstract. They are the back seat drivers of the world, those who lust for the power behind the throne. They want control from the shadows. They full realize that heavy is the head that wears the crown. They also realize the man on the throne makes an excellent target for the homicidal disgruntled. They realize the man who is praised as world savior today at noon can well be the enemy of mankind before sunset. They realize world leaders are faceless and infinitely interchangeable. When the world savior of today falls from favor, he can be swiftly and efficiently replaced and the man who placed the savior of yesterday on the throne can be in charge of his execution with the rising sun of the day following.
It is well to remember that anyone who demands the power to create for you a perfect world is the same man who is demanding the power to bring your world to an end. If you are searching for a better world, the best person to create that world for you is yourself. Take the world as it is and learn how best to adjust to the conditions as you find them. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you set your mind and determination to do so. It is a wise man who understands that to best be controlled, Nature must first be obeyed.
Every one, it seems, wants to make the world better. Those few uncultured souls who express no overpowering desire to make the world a better place are viewed as immoral throwbacks without a shred of decency. We look upon those generous philanthropists who are constantly calling our attention to their unselfish desire to improve the world as champions of our own need to have a kinder, gentler world. If those wonderful world better makers should achieve their goals of making the world better, then the world would become by definition better for everyone, including our own small selves.
Well, maybe and maybe not. It all depends.
What exactly it depends on is exactly what is meant in practical terms by making the world better. If my idea of making the world better includes my winning the lottery and being set financially with more money than I shall ever know what to do with, that is likely not a concept of a better world that is shared by many other people. Their concept of a better world is that they should win the lottery. Right away you perceive there is a basic conflict at work here in the perception of a perfect world. For most Americans as well as most of Europe, making the world better includes oil prices at an acceptable level. Many people and most politicians find it perfectly acceptable to do whatever necessary to keep oil prices in line, including questionable support for various Middle Eastern regimes that boast a less than stellar record with the dealings with their own citizens. One of the consequences of the attempts to control oil prices by any convenient means available was the loss of two New York skyscrapers and extensive damage to the pentagon on September eleven. It can be safely constructed that Nine Eleven did not rank high toward making a better world for any one with the likely exception of Osama bin Laden.
Any time you hear someone grandly proclaiming they want to make the world better, it becomes prudent to inquire how exactly they plan to go about making the world better and for whom. There have been administrations in Washington who believe the world is in such poor shape that any half baked program is justified. Such people were known to insist any action, even if it was the wrong action, was justified under current conditions. They insisted the American people should just trust them to make the world better, even though they themselves admitted they had no idea the consequences their proposed actions could set in motion.
When you come right down to it, this world is actually about as close to perfection as it is possible for humans to endure. The simple reason for that is that our kind has been adapting to the conditions of this world for millions of years. Oxygen exists in the atmosphere in just about the right proportions for our liking, the temperature is generally hospitable, the soil will provide mostly what we require to eat if we restrain from making pigs of ourselves and, ultimately, if we persist in populating the planet with more of our kind than is sustainable, our numbers will be cut back to a manageable number. The thinning out will likely not be pleasant, but it will be efficient. This world takes care of its own.
So what is to be said of those who insist they should be allowed to make the world a better place? What, we should ask, is their agenda? For the most part, those who set out to make the world better want to create a world that is better for them. They want a world where they consistently win the lottery. They want a world where the price of oil is well within their means of purchase. They want a world in which they are asked for a date by the best looking girl in school, a world where they drive the finest car, a world where they are captain of the champion football team, a world where world leaders come to them for advice, a world where everyone loves them and a world where they can make the honor list without bothering to study. These are people who convince themselves if the world is perfect for them, it will be perfect for everyone else in consequence. If first place is reserved to them, everyone else will be content with runner-up.
There are also the kinds of better world advocates who are content with the status that comes with proclaiming the desire for a better world. They actually desire no special material gain. They have no desire to win the lottery, they have no problem with the price of oil whatever it may be, and they do not lust after the best looking girl in school or the hottest cars. They have little interest in sports and do not yearn to world leadership. Their desires are much more insidious and abstract. They are the back seat drivers of the world, those who lust for the power behind the throne. They want control from the shadows. They full realize that heavy is the head that wears the crown. They also realize the man on the throne makes an excellent target for the homicidal disgruntled. They realize the man who is praised as world savior today at noon can well be the enemy of mankind before sunset. They realize world leaders are faceless and infinitely interchangeable. When the world savior of today falls from favor, he can be swiftly and efficiently replaced and the man who placed the savior of yesterday on the throne can be in charge of his execution with the rising sun of the day following.
It is well to remember that anyone who demands the power to create for you a perfect world is the same man who is demanding the power to bring your world to an end. If you are searching for a better world, the best person to create that world for you is yourself. Take the world as it is and learn how best to adjust to the conditions as you find them. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you set your mind and determination to do so. It is a wise man who understands that to best be controlled, Nature must first be obeyed.
posted by Gabriel at 9:13 pm
<< Home