Technology has given human civilization more material comfort than ever before. Often commentators claim their is progress in the world with more democratic governments and free markets. This is an illusion. Safety, comfort, and stability are not equally distributed around the world. Poverty, war, and racism will continue to be persistent problems with limited hope of a permanent or sustainable solution. The world of the 21 century is more unstable economically and politically. Global society has entered a state of general malaise. It effects populations at a large level and a personal one. Mental and physical health can be effected. Life has become extremely regimented even in a country that considers itself democratic. There are more feelings of isolation,even though mass communication is widely available. Societies are losing meaningful philosophical and ideological value systems. They have no alternative to older paradigms and thus engage in erratic or bizarre behavior. A nihilistic description of this perspective is not accurate, because frustration projects itself in public discord. At one time the concept of the future was an idea that seemed thrilling and prosperous. The dream has led to a nightmare and a existential crisis. The realization that the world can change for the better has died and been replaced with either disillusion or lack of hope. A revolution in politics, culture, and society may not be entirely blocked by the power structure, but by the frustration and lack of solicitous vigor. Change can happen, yet it will not be the revolutionary change to depose oppressive structures. Society is thus frozen unable to improve or advance.
Labor was at one time a source of fulfillment to people. The modern day workforce has been turned into a regimented revolving door. The attitude that has emerged from the post-World War II period is to get a high paying job and become a member of the corporate machine. It is not about pursing a career that is satisfying to an individual, but the one that can make the most money. There are workers who have reached the top of the corporate structure, yet still find themselves in a state of melancholy. This may be due to the fact their work is monotonous and does not produce anything of significance. Management positions and workers in service sector jobs do not produce an actual product. This has to an extent been dissolved by advancing technology and a rapidly changing economy. Manufacturing or liberal arts related occupations may disappear in the distant future in which robot labor will replace human labor. Those who cannot adjust will be trapped in a permanent underclass. To an extent this has happened with elements of the workforce. There are people who have not received a university education and do not have the skills to remain competitive. The other part of the spectrum has a workforce with a university degree or higher, but few jobs available. Those who do procure employment either victims of stagnant wages or limited opportunities for advancement. Workers go from company to company seeking to sustain themselves and have enough savings for retirement. The majority of the workforce is trapped in jobs they hate or work they feel that does not contribute to anything. This may explain the increase in depression or anxiety in particular developed nations.
The lack of a belief system has been replaced by an obsessive materialism. A person's value is no longer based on their character, rather their status or the amount of wealth they have. This distortion in thought has resulted in various problems. It even ruins interpersonal relations among various societies .The traditional conservatives say lack of religion is what causes most of the societal issues of today. This is a false statement on the basis that any thought system that seeks to reduce critical thinking will never improve anything. Religion has at least in the modern world, been used a means of creating cohesion in fractured societies and states. People who have many personal challenges use it as a coping mechanism when there is no other solution.The developed nations either put a huge amount of investment in technologies that are frivolous such as phones, cameras, or various entertainment media. Consumption has become so lucrative the public does not even understand how much they have become controlled by advertisement. It has become so prevalent that it has rewired human behavior to only think in terms of consumerism. Consumerism has become a religion unto itself. Religion is in many ways an empty system of conviction. It expects people to believe a set of ideas without a rational thought process. Politics also does this in a similar fashion and is having a crisis of its own. The Western democracies and the experiments in the developing world constantly speak of values of freedom and human rights. However, their own societies are unequal and engage in warfare. This rhetoric and contradictory behavior proves that there is not a solid foundation for those beliefs. The superficial presentation demonstrates the death of a genuine political belief system. Political philosophy has been reduced to sound bites, wedge issues, and a hostile binary political faction system. Contemporary society has lost the love for higher ideas in regards to ethics, epistemology, ontology, and metaphysics. What has been put in its place is a hedonistic consumerism.
Public health has become a major issue. The longer people live the more ailments they will face. The modern day lifestyle of fast food and sugar based diets has caused heart disease and weight related illness. While there still are nations that have food insecurity, there are some that are being killed by too much consumption. This will cause strain on healthcare systems. A rapidly growing aging population and youthful people in poor health will be a challenge. The population gets less exercise and is more comfortable with a sedentary lifestyle. obesity will not just effect one region of the globe,it will spread. The lack of honest food labeling and nutritional contents can be blamed, but there is another element.When one lives in a land of abundance, there is a belief that their should be no self control. Eating, drinking, or doing anything in excess is seen as a right. People can have knowledge of the negative health effects of a behavior, but will continue to do so if it provides them an escape. This also explains drug addiction to an extent. Excess becomes a way to escape from particular life struggles or challenges that are not easily solved. Public health is not just effected by personal choice; environment plays a role. The dramatic climate shift occurring on Earth combined with increases in air pollution will cause more chronic illness. Respiratory system diseases will gradually become more prevalent. It is unknown what effect this will have on the nervous system. The current age seems to pose more health problems. The more terrifying aspect is that bacteria has the ability to become resistant to antibiotics. Microorganisms evolve just like other animals and it appears they are responding to human made medicine. The maintenance of public health will become a even greater problem in the future,if no action is taken.
There is a general sense of frustration and malaise in global society. This is not anything new. Discord has been a part of human civilization and been the catalyst for revolutions. The difference now is that more people are so disillusioned that they rather not even try to challenge the established order. They either disengage from the society only focusing on themselves internally. The contemporary era has become one of manufactured dissent. False movements emerge out of social media or organizations with ulterior motives. There have been activists who have been attempting to raise awareness of certain issues for decades, but are either marginalized or silenced. Protest means nothing if it is done in a manner that will be effective. Disruption is not the goal itself, it is designed to stop the mechanisms of the oppression or injustice. The modern day protest does not function in the most effective manner and as a result there is no change. People all around the world are frustrated with their government or the decline in their communities. Neoliberal capitalism has generated more poverty internationally and the gap continues to grow between classes. Their is also a disparity between nation-states and ethnic groups. The West continues to intervene in African , South American, and Asian nations. Neocolonialism and racism are policies of the United States and the European Union. The White man's burden has been replaced with democracy promotion under the cover of protecting human rights. The world population hears on a consistent basis news of war and mass migrations that were induced by Western aggression. World leaders no longer seek to change or improve the world. They have become simple managers with limited policy objectives. This is culpable for such an increase in anger and distrust of government globally. The early 21st century is the age of protest, yet this unconventional participation has no direction or defined goals other than just to oppose the government. Sadly, the frustration that is generated by various populations is not directed in a positive way. There is a wave of nativist xenophobic racism sweeping across Europe and the US born out of economic turmoil, societal decline, and disappointment with the state of affairs.
There will be more challenges as the 21st century progresses. The future has been in some literature portrayed as a utopia. Utopia is fiction. The world will never reach a state of calm or peace. Humanity's nature to destroy and conquer is too powerful to overcome. Conflict has been the driving force of societies and states. Conflict does not have to be open warfare. It can simply be division among a community, groups, states, or political governance system. While individual freedom should be valued, there needs to be a level of cohesion to keep society functional. Due to various factors that cohesion is eroding. Around the world people are dividing themselves more so around ethnic, religious, and national lines. This just increases chances of larger conflicts erupting. The lugubrious prospects of the decades to come make many worry. It was erroneously thought that their would be an end of history. However, their have not yet been new political systems or ideologies to say that liberal democracy and its values will be triumphant as a global system. There will still be many competing systems of conviction. The contemporary crisis of society is both personal and within a wider community. It will be harder for certain people to adjust to the rapid cultural, technological, and social changes. The rural areas will gradually disappear giving way to more urbanization. Mechanization and robotics may make employment limited unless some form of universal income is implemented. Labor, public health, and dealing with discord as well as nihilism must be top priorities for any leader. The unusual aspect of this situation is that possessions create the illusion of prosperity. The countries that are considered developed still have a working class that is not allowed to advance itself. The world needs a paradigm shift for the sake of its survival.
Labor was at one time a source of fulfillment to people. The modern day workforce has been turned into a regimented revolving door. The attitude that has emerged from the post-World War II period is to get a high paying job and become a member of the corporate machine. It is not about pursing a career that is satisfying to an individual, but the one that can make the most money. There are workers who have reached the top of the corporate structure, yet still find themselves in a state of melancholy. This may be due to the fact their work is monotonous and does not produce anything of significance. Management positions and workers in service sector jobs do not produce an actual product. This has to an extent been dissolved by advancing technology and a rapidly changing economy. Manufacturing or liberal arts related occupations may disappear in the distant future in which robot labor will replace human labor. Those who cannot adjust will be trapped in a permanent underclass. To an extent this has happened with elements of the workforce. There are people who have not received a university education and do not have the skills to remain competitive. The other part of the spectrum has a workforce with a university degree or higher, but few jobs available. Those who do procure employment either victims of stagnant wages or limited opportunities for advancement. Workers go from company to company seeking to sustain themselves and have enough savings for retirement. The majority of the workforce is trapped in jobs they hate or work they feel that does not contribute to anything. This may explain the increase in depression or anxiety in particular developed nations.
The lack of a belief system has been replaced by an obsessive materialism. A person's value is no longer based on their character, rather their status or the amount of wealth they have. This distortion in thought has resulted in various problems. It even ruins interpersonal relations among various societies .The traditional conservatives say lack of religion is what causes most of the societal issues of today. This is a false statement on the basis that any thought system that seeks to reduce critical thinking will never improve anything. Religion has at least in the modern world, been used a means of creating cohesion in fractured societies and states. People who have many personal challenges use it as a coping mechanism when there is no other solution.The developed nations either put a huge amount of investment in technologies that are frivolous such as phones, cameras, or various entertainment media. Consumption has become so lucrative the public does not even understand how much they have become controlled by advertisement. It has become so prevalent that it has rewired human behavior to only think in terms of consumerism. Consumerism has become a religion unto itself. Religion is in many ways an empty system of conviction. It expects people to believe a set of ideas without a rational thought process. Politics also does this in a similar fashion and is having a crisis of its own. The Western democracies and the experiments in the developing world constantly speak of values of freedom and human rights. However, their own societies are unequal and engage in warfare. This rhetoric and contradictory behavior proves that there is not a solid foundation for those beliefs. The superficial presentation demonstrates the death of a genuine political belief system. Political philosophy has been reduced to sound bites, wedge issues, and a hostile binary political faction system. Contemporary society has lost the love for higher ideas in regards to ethics, epistemology, ontology, and metaphysics. What has been put in its place is a hedonistic consumerism.
Public health has become a major issue. The longer people live the more ailments they will face. The modern day lifestyle of fast food and sugar based diets has caused heart disease and weight related illness. While there still are nations that have food insecurity, there are some that are being killed by too much consumption. This will cause strain on healthcare systems. A rapidly growing aging population and youthful people in poor health will be a challenge. The population gets less exercise and is more comfortable with a sedentary lifestyle. obesity will not just effect one region of the globe,it will spread. The lack of honest food labeling and nutritional contents can be blamed, but there is another element.When one lives in a land of abundance, there is a belief that their should be no self control. Eating, drinking, or doing anything in excess is seen as a right. People can have knowledge of the negative health effects of a behavior, but will continue to do so if it provides them an escape. This also explains drug addiction to an extent. Excess becomes a way to escape from particular life struggles or challenges that are not easily solved. Public health is not just effected by personal choice; environment plays a role. The dramatic climate shift occurring on Earth combined with increases in air pollution will cause more chronic illness. Respiratory system diseases will gradually become more prevalent. It is unknown what effect this will have on the nervous system. The current age seems to pose more health problems. The more terrifying aspect is that bacteria has the ability to become resistant to antibiotics. Microorganisms evolve just like other animals and it appears they are responding to human made medicine. The maintenance of public health will become a even greater problem in the future,if no action is taken.
There is a general sense of frustration and malaise in global society. This is not anything new. Discord has been a part of human civilization and been the catalyst for revolutions. The difference now is that more people are so disillusioned that they rather not even try to challenge the established order. They either disengage from the society only focusing on themselves internally. The contemporary era has become one of manufactured dissent. False movements emerge out of social media or organizations with ulterior motives. There have been activists who have been attempting to raise awareness of certain issues for decades, but are either marginalized or silenced. Protest means nothing if it is done in a manner that will be effective. Disruption is not the goal itself, it is designed to stop the mechanisms of the oppression or injustice. The modern day protest does not function in the most effective manner and as a result there is no change. People all around the world are frustrated with their government or the decline in their communities. Neoliberal capitalism has generated more poverty internationally and the gap continues to grow between classes. Their is also a disparity between nation-states and ethnic groups. The West continues to intervene in African , South American, and Asian nations. Neocolonialism and racism are policies of the United States and the European Union. The White man's burden has been replaced with democracy promotion under the cover of protecting human rights. The world population hears on a consistent basis news of war and mass migrations that were induced by Western aggression. World leaders no longer seek to change or improve the world. They have become simple managers with limited policy objectives. This is culpable for such an increase in anger and distrust of government globally. The early 21st century is the age of protest, yet this unconventional participation has no direction or defined goals other than just to oppose the government. Sadly, the frustration that is generated by various populations is not directed in a positive way. There is a wave of nativist xenophobic racism sweeping across Europe and the US born out of economic turmoil, societal decline, and disappointment with the state of affairs.
There will be more challenges as the 21st century progresses. The future has been in some literature portrayed as a utopia. Utopia is fiction. The world will never reach a state of calm or peace. Humanity's nature to destroy and conquer is too powerful to overcome. Conflict has been the driving force of societies and states. Conflict does not have to be open warfare. It can simply be division among a community, groups, states, or political governance system. While individual freedom should be valued, there needs to be a level of cohesion to keep society functional. Due to various factors that cohesion is eroding. Around the world people are dividing themselves more so around ethnic, religious, and national lines. This just increases chances of larger conflicts erupting. The lugubrious prospects of the decades to come make many worry. It was erroneously thought that their would be an end of history. However, their have not yet been new political systems or ideologies to say that liberal democracy and its values will be triumphant as a global system. There will still be many competing systems of conviction. The contemporary crisis of society is both personal and within a wider community. It will be harder for certain people to adjust to the rapid cultural, technological, and social changes. The rural areas will gradually disappear giving way to more urbanization. Mechanization and robotics may make employment limited unless some form of universal income is implemented. Labor, public health, and dealing with discord as well as nihilism must be top priorities for any leader. The unusual aspect of this situation is that possessions create the illusion of prosperity. The countries that are considered developed still have a working class that is not allowed to advance itself. The world needs a paradigm shift for the sake of its survival.
