Scott Adams is the creator of the comic strip Dilbert. He’s the successful author of non-Dilbert-related works, including a popular novel called “The Religion War.” He recently proclaimed that we are all living at the threshold of the Golden Age.
How can anyone possibly think that things are improving when the news bombards us with constant streams of, well, horror? One of Scott’s running commentaries is that we are all living in some kind of simulation, similar to the movie, “The Matrix.” He shares that vision with Elon Musk, and I have to admit that there are parts of that storyline that I find agreement..
Unless you avoid all forms of “news,” you believe deep inside that our world is in danger of destruction and our society is on the brink of failure. We accept our climate soon will freeze us to death in another ice age, or cook us in unrelenting high temperatures.
As recently as 2018, the media told us we should fear thinning or holes in the ozone layer that envelopes the earth, supposedly reducing our protection from cancer-causing UV rays.
Excess harvesting of trees will destroy our future, and industrial farming will make all of our soil incompatible with food crops.
Every potential disaster is directly linked to mankind’s errant belief that it is capable of destroying everything that now exists.
Of course, humans can do harm, and often in massive amounts, but is it reasonable to accept that we could collectively, or individually, shatter the whole ball of wax? Can we say hubris?
The most recent threat to everything has been COVID-19. A tiny virus launched the entire world into a panic and changed virtually everything. Isn’t that evidence that humans can destroy the entire planet, plus every living being?
Things in 2022 are markedly different from what they were before 2020. Our responses to the virus flew off in several directions and created conflicts and hostilities. And more. Many of us shouted at each other and cities burned. Schools closed, and businesses were shuttered. Many persons died in large numbers. Leadership made dire mistakes that made practically everything worse than it probably should have been. Yet, here we are in 2022. Changed, yet still here.
We haven’t beaten COVID-19 or any of its cousins, but we know how to live in a dangerous environment around every corner. We learned that many businesses could function efficiently by not bringing hoards of employees together in the same buildings, mostly to do repetitive work that could be done remotely. Schools change when classrooms aren’t safe.
We have learned to employ the safety measures we deserted in recent decades. Is it necessary for 100,000 individuals to gather at a sporting or entertainment event? Are parties better when we cram a few hundred intoxicated adults into small rooms designed for 50? Have we learned that it is best to stay home when we’re feeling poorly, instead of slogging off to work – to make ourselves worse and infect others, because it’s expected?
COVID-19 is opening our eyes, and we’re questioning things. Recently, scientists in the EU (European Union) announced that nuclear power should be considered a green energy resource – yet just a few years ago, we universally feared anything related to nuclear. When done correctly, nuclear power safely will provide all the energy we need – without using carbon-producing fossil fuels claimed to be the most onerous source of all environmental changes. Lowering energy costs towards zero will positively impact many areas of life, including homelessness and education.
A significant characteristic of humans is that we always rise to the occasion, not necessarily smoothly, or directly, but rise we will. Our history proves it.
I agree with Scott Adams. We are right at the threshold of a great Golden Age, and it seems to me that it is being ushered in by the most unexpected source, the COVID-19 pandemic of the 21st Century.
Larry Frieders is a pharmacist in Aurora who had a book published, The Undruggist: Book One, A Tale of Modern Apothecary and Wellness. He can be reached at thecompounder.com/ask-larry or www.facebook.com/thecompounder.