Collapse

[lenguy]

I just finished watching a program on History Channel called Prophets of Doom. Essentially it was a program where a group of people came together with their knowledge in their own field of expertise to weigh in what would lead to the collapse of America. The issues they raise I thought goes well beyond just one nation and I figured I'd share it with you and try and maybe elaborate on them as well.They make it sound as if this change will occur over night, in the blink of an eye and that most people are unaware of such changes creeping up on their door steps. This thread isn't so much about the possibility of a world apocalypse but more about the collapse of culture,civilization and modern society.

Most of the worlds largest and most powerful ancient empires have all crumbled. Nations that thought they were invincible and impervious of collapse have enjoy great periods of economic boom. But for whatever reason, these nations have buckled and crashed and burned. Is our modern world any different? Are we immune?

Economy: I can't expand on this one but suffice to say we are in a global debt and people believe that the entire global economy is in danger of falling apart. Credit and debt has skyrocketed and may never be payed off.Economists think our financial system will simply fall apart. "You cannot solve a credit crisis by adding more credit,period".

Oil/Natural Resources:Its no secret that oil supplies around the world are depleting and this has people concerned that we as a society will be in a major crisis when we happen to one day wake up and realize we have exhausted all our oil reserves,what do we do then? There have been no major efforts for finding longer term permanent solutions to prepare for when that day finally does arrive. Sure ideas have been tossed around but nobody seems to take them serious enough to voice their opinions and stand up for major change. People often can't accept the truth, that we are exhausting our oil supplies,no that's to painful to admit.They can't grasp the seriousness and gravity of an urgent crisis. We don't seem to push for change until the problem is starring us straight in the face. Natural resources are depleting faster than alternative energies can replace them.

Water: As a species we can survive without an economy, we can live without oil and other natural resources. Water,however is essential for our survival. Fresh water supplies around the world are slumping and in some countries there is simply not enough to go around. People often take water for granted and therefore it is often misused and wasted. Water is the holy elixir that plays god on our planet. It is the only reason life on Earth is even possible, so it makes sense that when you take away water from that equation,everything goes with it and that includes us.

Technology: Now wait,technology? Technology is around to provide a much smoother and easier way of life,how can technology be bad? Well,this is more of a future threat. A.I could at some point become so advanced that it will be self aware and starting thinking for itself and mass producing itself as well. Imagine a world were there is another dominate species in direct competition with the human races? Imagine terminator and then imagine that as a very serious possible reality that is ever looming. This threat may not be as immediate as the rest but in the not so distant future is could pose a real serious threat if not properly maintained, in our life time. Scary stuff no?

Terrorism/Nuclear Warfare: The rise of nuclear war may be down but the threat of any nuclear attack is on the rise. The resources and tools even needed to make a small even large nuclear device,with enough research is possible in the hands of any regular joe. What if a terrorist organization managed to get a hold of even on of these doomsday devices? detonated in the right city and the right area,easily hundreds of thousands if not millions will die. Counties like Pakistan have nuclear weapons. A country full of corruption and weak surveillance. It is possible somebody could walk away with one of this bombs and set off a chain of events which could lead to an ever larger threat of a nuclear holocaust.

So out of all this I ask.

If you had to pick one,which of these issues do you find the most urgent immediate threat that should be dealt with as soon as possible?

How do you imagine a global collapse of culture and society as a whole? If it ever will,how do you think it will all crumble?

Anything you could contribute? Solutions? Problems being overlooked, with issues that could potentially be more serious than any on this list above?

 

[TSG]

Most civilizations eventually crumble and fall, the Mayans, the Inca, the Aztecs, the Holy Roman Empire, and such. I can fully see countries such as Russia, England, Japan, China, India, and even the United States crumbling someday, leaving countries such as Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Egypt, and Israel, in what many could call the center or focal point of earth, the Middle East, to rise. I couldn't see the entire Earth civilization collapsing except through very extreme means, but I suppose a complete nuclear holocaust, a major natural disaster such as a super volcano , or gamma ray burst, or a technological advance such as robots could do it. But economically or resource wise, which are two of the biggest threats, I couldn't see everything collapsing. And I could easily see the huge countries like Russia and the Unites States falling while resource heavy smaller countries rising from the ashes to establish dominance.

A societal collapse is extremely possible, and more than likely imminent based on historical events, and a complete Earth-wide collapse, while very hard to imagine, could also happen. I see the societal collapse, or a collapse of the current mega-powers of the world the more likely and imminent, but anything can happen. It is an interesting topic, and although it isn't brought up as often, it's a likely one that people may not see coming.