A Case for Pessimism in the 21st century.

*** Notes for Writing THIS Essay ***. (A) It is not enough to explain why things are so bad (or so good). It is necessary to show events or developments as evidence. (B) But rattling off events will also not suffice. For pessimism (or optimism) to prevail, there must be explanations to support why such conditions are likely to persist or become more magnified (C) A question like this is so broad that it invites us to discuss as many of the aspects of human life as we can. It also invites us to be succinct in our illustrations in order to cover substantial ground.

Point & Outline for each body paragraph : (1) We are killing ourselves Modern society is fraught with woes. Culture of excess & poor management of freedom obesity, vanity, materialism, promiscuity. Dependencies & personal insecurities of various kinds & multiple degrees of dysfunction within the person & the family. Environmental destruction fuelled by consumption demand for raw materials (like rare earths), exotic food (2) We are killing each other US Anti-Terror Wars Iraq (2003), Afghanistan (2001) + Axis of Evil Civil wars/strife Bosnia (1992 to 1995), Rwanda (1994), Libya (2011) Long-standing conflict Palestine, Taiwan-PRC, Russia-Chechnya, North Korea Dictators & Monarchs yet to be toppled means more conflict to come e.g. Kim Jong Il (North Korea), Than Shwe (Myanmar), Robert Mugabe (Zimbabwe), Africa & Middle East (3) Our moral compass has gone haywire Each development opens another can of moral issues genetics, nuclear technology, the internet etc Even among the devout, there is a contest between the moderates, the radicals and every school of thought in between. (4) Our economic systems are flawed but too deeply entrenched

Debt-based economy , unfair trade & culture of corporate exploitation (5) Our actions do not match our plans and ideals Noble aims Millennium Goals, UNHRC BUT Our systems support the widening of the gulf between the rich and the poor + Insufficient enforcement (6) We do not learn enough from the past We try to avert large-scale war (at the international and national levels) by examining past events BUT We only learn selectively. If unfairness and abuse serves us well, we tend to perpetuate them even if history teaches us that these will have severe consequences (7) We are communicating more than ever before but, some, not all of it is for the greater good As individuals, informal communities, organised non-government groups, nations etc. (8) We have never been this coordinated in efforts to help others but can we fully trust those helming these efforts International aid or disguised exploitation ? Regime change or corporate opportunity ? CONCLUSION In sum, history has shown that we are indeed intelligent, adaptable survivors worthy of our position at the top of the food chain. Sadly, the pages of history have also been unfailingly consistent in telling and re-telling the story of our willingness to endure what we now indifferently call collateral damage the blatant treatment of others as entirely dispensable when we strive for our own success. This does not bode well for humanity.