How Has Our World Changed?
HAS your world changed? The ancient Greek philosopher Heracleitus said: “Nothing endures but change.” Change is a constant in the life of all of us.
As you look back over the last 10, 20, 30, or more years, what changes have you seen? You may have seen change come in the guise of modernization and in the discarding of traditional values. Doubtless, you see some changes as positive and others as negative.
If you are over 70, what changes have you seen from the time of your youth? You remember a time when TV did not exist, when planes plodded along at a hundred miles an hour [150 km/hr], when most international travel was by ocean liner, when drug abuse seemed to be limited to opium dens, when automobiles were few and far between. Yes, your world has certainly changed.
The Changed Consumer Society
But the world has changed even for younger persons. Just 45 years ago, world markets were dominated by Western products and know-how. Now, Oriental nations of the Pacific rim have become leaders in automobile production, computers, cameras, TVs, and many sorts of electronic gadgets.
This is illustrated by what Awake! was told by an experienced Chinese traveler: “Just 30 or 40 years ago, the dream of the average Chinese was to get a bicycle and a sewing machine. Those were the current status symbols. Now the dream is to possess a color TV, a VCR, a refrigerator, and a motorbike.” The consumer society, whether in China or elsewhere, has changed its tastes and demands.
This kind of change in viewpoint has happened in many nations as their economy has improved. Pedro, a Catalan in his early 40’s, stated: “In Spain 30 years ago, the ambition was to own at least a little 600 cc Seat [Fiat] car. Now Spaniards yearn for a German BMW!” Jagdish Patel, a resident in the United States, commented on a recent trip to his native India: “I was struck by the number of automobiles now on Indian roads. The highways still sport the same Hindustan cars, but now they are joined by modern versions of cars, motor scooters, and motorbikes made in India under license from foreign companies.”
Changes in Science
Just 25 years ago, many still viewed the moon as an intriguing mystery. Since then, man has left his footprints and scientific instruments on that alien moonscape and has brought back rock samples for analysis. Flights of the American space shuttle are now a regular occurrence, and U.S. scientists talk of establishing a permanent space station and of going to Mars.
Who had heard of AIDS 15 years ago? Now it is a worldwide scourge, and millions live in fear of it.
Political Changes
Only four years ago, an apparently unbreachable wall divided the city of Berlin; there was a Communist Soviet Union and a Cold War. Now Berlin has been chosen as the capital of a united Germany, and 11 of the 15 republics of the former Soviet Union have formed a Commonwealth of Independent States.
Just a few years ago, the United Nations was mainly an arena for the struggle between capitalist and Communist powers, with the so-called unaligned nations hedging their bets and looking on. Now the nations of East and West are talking about peace and security, and the United Nations has more teeth. It can send military forces to crisis areas all over the world. Three years ago, there were countries known as Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. Now both have fragmented into smaller independent States.
With all these changes, has the world progressed very much toward true peace, justice, and a fair distribution of food and resources? Has the world become more civilized? Can you walk the streets without fear of criminals? Have we been educated so that we no longer hate others on the basis of their race, religion, politics, life-style, or language? Is change leading to real progress for the human family in general and for our home, the earth? Where are we headed? The following articles will examine these and other questions.