Friday 30 December 2011

2012 - Armageddon or Awakening?

Let's face it, society is broken.  The sticking plaster fixes won't hold and it's almost certain that our financial infrastructure is going to crumble.

There's corruption in governments the world over and greed is rife.  Politicians are elected according to the resources they can muster to raise their profile and not on their merit.  The deals they make along the way have to be repaid in favours later down the track, usually compromising the greater good.

Capitalism hasn't worked, as shareholders demand ever-increasing returns, and interest on lending creates money in the system that was never minted in the first place.  Socialism, for all its well-intended ideology, failed because it removed incentive.

Yet something's bubbling under the surface as people reassess old and trusted values.  There's certainly some kind of awakening, not necessarily in a religious but possibly a humanist sense.  Recognition of the individual and a feeling that we can all work together to effect change - not because the Nanny State bludgeons us with heavy-handed equality legislation, but because people are rediscovering genuine connectivity and a sense of belonging through social media.

Is government 'per se' in fact 'passé'?  Opposition only serves for political showboating and is obstructive when we should be uniting to address our common concerns.  There are good brains on both sides.

We need organisation, not rulers.  We have remarkable technology at our disposal to anticipate and distribute the world's resource requirements more efficiently (and fairly). We in the more privileged countries could get by with less choice - why are we so obsessed with paying above the odds for premium brands and social stigma when our global neighbours crave basic clothing, food and shelter?

I don't have the answers but know we need a new way of thinking - you can start by contributing below if you wish ...