Pessimism in Theory

I love the opening to the "soliloquy" this week. Thinking about possible, unlikely, likely and impossible scenarios is one of my favorite things to do. Over-exaggeration can sometimes lead to more spontaneous or out of the box solutions for problems or just general changes.

There is always anxiety about transitions of power. No state has stayed at same level forever and each state is aware of this fact. There is a general consensus there there must always be a fall to follow the rise of a great power.

The rise and fall theory assumes a certain kind of actor. Each wants autonomy and everyone is competing, but for what? There is no broader social context other than sheer power, or the capacity to do as one wills.

According to Professor Jackson, there are a few general options for the way in which the world can function. Hegemonic institutions are set up by dominant power and maintained through threat of coercive force... but we also have constitutional moments which generally happen after wars. These create a new set of rules for "games" in following decades.

Another possibility is the notion of humanities, or an "operative we." How can we create something that fits the largest possible entity (humans)?

One theory that has been discussed is that the expansion of awareness of the world outside earth helps create an awareness of how much larger the universe is and the world becomes a community as a whole. Generally in group communications, an outside threat is necessary for group unity, but global warming and environmental things are not good enough for the global community. The threat needs a face. An "other." A "them" to battle against us.

I have been waiting for this moment. I have been saying for a while now that the only way for the world to become a comprehensive community and actually get along is if aliens invaded. It's nice to see these thoughts confirmed by experts. Dr. Bosco quotes someone on this subject in his book as well.

Professor Jackson asks in his video if there is anything outside of an alien invasion that can create a true notion of humanity. Perhaps a zombie apocalypse (some sort of global disease scenario) could also bring about a sense of unity, but this is nearly as unlikely as an alien invasion or could even produce the opposite effect and turn everyone against everyone to bring about even more animosity.

Honestly, a world without war just may not be the natural order. In the past 50 to 100 years or so war has become less prevalent and the world population is becoming nearly unsustainable. I'm not saying war is the only factor, but even just the sheer amount of human beings on earth could bring about a war. War seems to be inevitable. Animosity, chaos and power struggles seem to be unavoidable when looking at history. Now that overpopulation is becoming more of an issue, I would not be surprised if this generation sees genocide on a level unmatched by an historical example. Though I certainly hope that this will never happen.