Wouldn’t it be good if people could just get along! World peace, the seemingly unattainable goal that seems to be mentioned on every beauty pageant application form, but is it really possible?
Well at the moment we are a race that is competing for the same resources, whether that is power, money, or things like oil, food, minerals etc, then you can usually find somebody in the world at any given moment fighting over one of those things. Then there is religion too, religion has caused many wars over the years, as people try to subjugate those who do not agree with their religious ideals, and unfortunately a lot of that still goes on, just look at Ireland, or the Middle East for evidence of that.
While we struggle with dwindling resources, and while we are essentially stuck on one small rock together then I think we won’t ever see any lasting peace, military action is seen as a viable way to force someone to give you what you want (even though it rarely works out like that). The one thing that I think will help to unite us and bring peace is space…
What do I mean by that? Well there are two different scenarios. The first is that we do get a moon base built, which China and the US keep talking about doing. If we can establish a permanent base on another planet then I think it will allow us to think further than our own borders, and of course it will encourage co-operation as it will be such a mammoth task to complete. Also the people who live on the moon (that sound silly when said like that, but it might be reality soon) will find it harder to keep their prejudices, instead of being Chinese or British etc, they will just all be people trying to survive in a hostile environment at the forefront of history.
The second scenario is that we make contact with a race from another world. Yes I know I have spoken about living on the moon and about meeting aliens, but hey we’re not going to find the answer to world peace on our own world are we? If we meet an extraterrestrial race who is friendly then our little disputes will seem puny in comparison to the fact we are not alone in this universe, and hopefully we will unify as the human race, rather than what we think of ourselves as at the moment which is the country we live in, or the religion we follow etc.
However of course they could be hostile, and then we would be drawn together through a common enemy, and that is a powerful force which can banish old animosities and form solid alliances.
Or of course there is a third option, which is that technology advances so much that all our needs are met, nobody is short of food, shelter or comfort, we don’t rely on finite fuels to power our lives, and we can terraform new planets to meet the needs of a burgeoning population.
Unfortunately I don’t think any of those scenarios will become a reality, certainly not in my lifetime, but we can all dream, right?