Every thinker in every point of history rightfully claimed to be in a quandary over which direction we should go to maintain what is good about the state of humanity. Sometimes the considerations are spiritual, sometimes aspirational, sometimes inspirational, sometimes about local survival, and sometimes about acquiring more territory. But we, particularly our leaders, should not discard or separate these things in the mind except to know when to apply each most effectively and beneficially. I often address this thought in short essays, bumper sticker quips, or fashionable memes. In this space, I will attempt to write a fictional short story that addresses some of these issues. Beware! What I write here is a first draft, complete with grammatical mistakes, plot holes, and poor syntax; if there is one, the final product, while with a similar message, will likely be considerably different from the initial draft plot-line. My challenge is to finish this before Elon Musk lands a human on Mars.
"What surprises me most about humankind is that… by thinking anxiously about the future, we forget the present, such that we live in neither the present nor the future." ~Anaïs Nin
PROLOGUE
The mood in the Coeus/Neptune control room was unusually tense for a routine, but critical course correction. The team had rehearsed daily for the past six months. Gabrielle Sinclair checked the communication links. All was nominal for a slight course correction, then activating the autonomous mode, but she had to wait 9 minutes 31 seconds…30…29. She knew they were coming to shut down the operation. She had to wait; the officials would not need to intervene if the timing were not precise. They were determined. Did she have time? Frantically tapping the console with her fingers, she whispered, “Wait…Wait…Wait.”
Eventually, she turned to see the six men led by a determined woman*, heels clicking, approaching quickly down the hallway. Time left: 4:12…11…10
“Lock the door,” yelled Gabrielle to her co-worker**. “Stall!”
The woman official banged on the glass door. “Let us in. Now!” She locked eyes with Gabrielle.
They stared at each other, then Gabrielle looked back at the console. Time left: 3:25…24…23.
*Cinnamon Taylor’s daughter? If so, Cinnamon’s story must be embedded in the story line.
**Newton Feynman—develop character and indicate why the countdown is important.
Chapter 1. Campo Coperto
They call me Casey. Not exactly right, but close enough. I’m the barkeep here at Campo Coperto. I see you looking around, you must be new here. Looks nothing like those old photos. Yeah, it’s changed a lot over the years, but it always served the same function— protect us from the harsh conditions outside. Well, except those years, before the Great Migration Mandate, when they weren’t sure what to do with this mass of metal and glass. Okay, enough of my chitchat, you need a drink. I wish we have more variety for you, but we only have water and the CC concoction of beer and water, mostly water. We must follow the rules and provide you the same variety of sparseness on Avia. Yeah, I know you think that I have something special stashed away. Now that would be against regulations, wouldn’t it? Let’s see, your badge says you’re an officer trainee so you will be working down on the field. There’s a rumor that your predecessor found something special down there and either took it or hid it in the crops. Well, this whole place is special, I don’t understand why you want to leave it. Here’s you eight ounce of water for the next four hours. Oh, that special thing, I’m not sure, but I do know Gabby, the person who found it.
Chapter 2
Sitting up in bed, arms crossed, Gabby wondered how she would approach her team today, knowing that she would be committing mutiny in the eyes of most, and hoping that her job, and Mark’s, would be all she was risking. She turned her laptop toward Mark.
Mark raised is hand to block the glare from the morning light as he read the message.
Beware not to invest too much emotional energy in unquestioningly believing in a light-weight slogan, movement, flight of fancy, or person. Otherwise, you will be too exhausted to resist the dangerous, false notion of the “purity of thought.” And you may become so delusional when reality overwhelms that you will be unable to resist the promised poisonous potion of perpetual Paradise. But we can gain much from those rare, brilliant minds that fight the flow of time to maintain a youthful desire to probe and learn. But our admiration should never approach reverence. To think most brilliantly, the brilliant, child-like mind must resist anticipating negative consequences and be heedless of others’ perspectives, needs, and desires. Too much light will kill most plants. KCS
Turning his incredulous gaze from the screen toward Gabby, he asked, “This is what changed your mind?”
“Yes,” she replied with a sigh.
Mark, a CIA agent, knew the implications in the new political environment of fear and heroics.
Chapter 3. The Bored Room
Gabby listened for what seemed like hours as Christian Alexander made his case. She occasional exchange glances with Petrov, her assistant director across the table as the others smile and dutifully nodded their approval.
Dr. Alexander stands at the podium away from the Conference Room large monitor. With the assistance of a remote control, he skillsfully clicks his way through the presentation.
Ensuring Humanity's Survival:
The Earth faces potential existential risks, such as a large asteroid impact or a solar flare that could make the planet uninhabitable. Creating a backup civilization on Mars would safeguard humanity's future.
Gabby takes notes: Earth better protected than Mars! Mars- no magnetic field, tiny atmosphere, CLOSER to the Asteroid Belt…. IDIOTS
Humans are Explorers:
Mars as an opportunity to expand the scope and scale of human consciousness and understanding of the universe.
Gabby takes notes: Does he know about Hubble, JWST, Perseverance, Curiosity, Galileo, Juno, Voyager, Cassini/Huygens, New Horizons…etc, etc, etc????
Establishing a Self-Sustaining City:
The goal is not just to land on Mars, but to build a thriving, self-sufficient city with its own infrastructure, industries, and potentially even its own government.
Gabby takes notes: JOKE. Mars is an unprotected, desert planet hundreds of millions of miles away. Must destroy Earth to make Mars inhabitable! If we can do that, we can also make the inhospitable on Earth more hospitable….
New Technologies:
The development of technologies for Mars colonization, such as advanced rocket propulsion and resource utilization, could also have significant benefits for Earth.
Gabby takes notes: New technologies and skills develop from building anything‑‑‑so damnit, build something useful!
Inspiration and the Future of Space Exploration:
Mars inspires innovation and fuels public interest in space exploration, potentially leading to further advancements in science and technology.
Gabby takes notes. “Public interest” PUBLIC FUNDS. SPACE EXPLORATION ONLY WITH HUMANS ABOARD SLOWS OUR PROGRESS.
Alexander pushes a button on the controller to turn off the monitor located across the room. “I am happy to answer any questions.
Gabby writes in her notes: HE’S A CHILD! Brilliant, but a child.
CHAPTER 4. The Keeper’s Brother
You're not "on your grind." You're being exploited. A generation ago, one job was enough to pay all your bills. This is what's been taken from you.
There are many contributing factors to our angst. One is that a generation ago, we did not feel we needed every new shiny object or expensive would-be status symbol paraded before us. Technology and the desire for the next new thing have exceeded our wisdom. Unfortunately, we too often focus on the factors we can least control.
lmfao lies when the microwave came out people flocked for it when the color tv came out people flocked the VCR, DVD, Blu-ray ect..
yes, they did, and they still had less than we have today and were less likely to claim exploitation than we do today. We live in an incredibly convenient society, which allows us to buy things so easily; order stuff on Amazon, have it delivered, and then complain about the price. If there is blame for our “terrible” economic situation, we all share some responsibility. Convenience comes with a price.
Then explain how when Starbucks was founded, a 1 lb bag of their roasted coffee beans was 5.50$, but a 12oz cup of black goes for the same price today?
I don't think Starbucks sold anything but whole beans when they opened. I'm not an economist, but to answer your question, inflation and greater demand probably played a role. The line of cars I see at the Starbucks near me suggests that people are willing to pay the price. And for the same evil reason, I would not sell my house for the price I paid 30 years ago.
What’s preventing them from selling it at the original price?
nothing except the desire to stay solvent because they must pay their employees, suppliers, and others in today's dollars.
yep so, 1 cup of coffee costs Starbucks about 1$ to make with another .40 cents going to the overhead. This is every corporation in America.
yes, that is every corporation that wants to survive and provide the consumer with things to consume and perhaps generate enough income to expand to other locations in the future. There are many small local businesses that grow and make their own products without charging a lot for because there are no future projects. But to take advantage of those lower costs, the consumer must spend extra time and money to find these business. Enough consumers, on a daily basis, are willing to pay extra for the convenience of the Starbuck's next door, than travel to Aunt Fannie's Coffee Emporium and Saloon located outside of Luckenbach, Texas and find out that the coffee comes from Columbia and the local knick-knacks are made in China. But Fannie makes a great pecan pie.
That was way too simplistic! 100 years ago, telephones were practically indestructible! And most of them would still work today! It’s not the fault of consumers that ALL products are currently to break, and break often! It’s not the shiny new toy, it’s everything is designed to literally need to be replaced within a few years!
I’ll see your rotary phone and raise you a 2016 Honda Accord that won’t quit, plus a $9 Starbucks latte that doesn't seem to last. In short, we live in most prosperous time in human history, and in a time when we are exploited with more options than ever to have a good life. Unfortunately, we cannot all be prosperous to the same degree.
No, the cost of current toys doesn't make up for the change in basic expenses. You can go without them and still not be able to afford basic living within the same income bracket.
but without those “toys”, you would have a better financial foundation to move forward. As I originally stated, many factors contribute to an individual’s quality of life. The good news is that individuals have control over some of those things, so individuals should focus on those things and not wait for mana from
elsewhere. If the individual has done all they can or choose to do, and it is still not enough, then they have the option of the kindness of strangers in the form of government targeting or charities—both legitimate and, if used appropriately, helpful bridges. However, the inescapable reality is that even the latter two require individual effort to seek out those resources. When all those things are not enough, at least we can stand proud, believing that we have given our full measure and are still standing.
Even a generation ago, we did feel we needed every new shiny object or expensive would-be status symbol paraded before us.
Technology is NOT a shiny new object or expensive status symbol, it is a nessasary tool to function in todays society
You are correct, every generation has wanted more than the previous generation, and in reference to the OP, every generation has felt exploited by those who provide more sophisticated, expensive technology(comfort and convenience) because we convince ourselves it is our right to have these to have “necessary” things; a conspiracy theory, partly because we unknowingly pay for technology we don't use. One too often dismissed point is that if we are exploited, our expectations have contributed to that exploitation. There are opposing truths that interplay, and we should focus more on what we control and not be too quick and unproductive in passing responsibility and blame to others. Old Jack at the bar always told his lamenting clientele, “The more you take responsibility for your life, the less exploited you will feel.”
I will leave you the last word on this. Best wishes
A generation ago necessities were cheap and luxuries were expensive. A new TV might cost the months of rent. Today a new TV can cost as little as 1/4 of a month of rent.
You are correct. We live in the most prosperous times in human history— yet we feel exploited. Consider that those who provide food, housing, and healthcare expect something for their efforts. For those who really cannot afford these things, then these things will only exist for them to a degree offered by the kindness of strangers. The latter comes from charities and government relief.
"The people who provide every service are other exploited workers."
Yes of course, if "exploited" is the only word you choose to use, and then the only way to avoid being exploited is not to provide a service—of course that freedom comes with a hefty price of self-exploitation. And if exploited is all we see, then we exploit every worker who provides us a service by not providing that service for ourselves.
Status symbols are as old as humanity itself. If they were the cause of our current predicament, it would predate mesopotamia.
It's very comforting to blame systemic problems on individual choices, because you can control your own choices, but it's far harder to dismantle a system that is designed to pulverize you into nonexistence the moment you cease being a profitable asset.
Another consideration is that the human condition is the “systemic problem,” and the best we can do is manage it with the least draconian method possible. Although not perfect, we have continuously improved the lives of most, and we are most likely to improve things more by acknowledging both the good and the bad.
Once again, if that were the case, we would have had this problem the whole time, but the entire premise of this conversation is that this is NEW. That the generations that came before us could survive and even thrive on a single income, but we have to "hustle" and "grind" just to share a studio with roommates and use food assistance to buy enough instant noodles to stave off starvation.
Don't sacrifice genuine perspective and insight in your haste to seem profound.
Times they do change. No matter our financial state, access to food has never been easy; it actually is too easy. Freedom from death-causing infections has never been greater. The ability to access information has never been greater, while the ability to be distracted by nonsense has never been greater. However, the most significant change contributing to our current undesirable conditions is an increasing prosperity in an ever-increasingly dense population, all with higher expectations of prosperity while competing for the same limited resources. The result is an unpleasant adjustment to reality, which only the wisest leaders can soften the landing.
Also, today's hustle and grind differ from those of my parents and grandparents, who were expected to soften their own landing.
If one continuously blames the victims, one don't have to worry about changing the defective system.
The same is true if we convince ourselves we are victims. Folks are more likely to contribute to or vote for a cause if the beneficiary is willing to, in good faith, acknowledge responsibility for stewardship.
But the fall of the middle class in a much bigger factor than new iPhones.
Perhaps, but I think the fall of the political middle is the biggest problem. All the good ideas huddling around the middle have been split up and scattered to absurd extremes. The prognosis is not good.
Yeah, that's kind of a garbage take. Exactly what the billionaire class wants people saying.
I don't think the billionaires care what I think.
You as an individual? Maybe. But a critical mass of the society of which you're a part? Strong disagree. It's a critical mass of people who think like that they want.
I don't think the critical consensus of the masses is to cozy up with the billionaires. The consensus is that the very wealthy are evil and don't deserve what they have, and their wealth should be redistributed to the rest of us. But a little critical thinking will clarify that, outside of merry olde Sherwood Forrest, this approach has never had much success. The best we can do is vote for leaders who do not sell their souls (we are not very good at that), and to recognize that, despite all the evil ones out there, we live in the most prosperous time in human history, with fewer shackles and more opportunities than ever before to control our own well-being. Ironically, that prosperity has made it more challenging to keep up with those rapidly changing opportunities. Yes, opposing truths exist, and if we do not consider all of those truths, we will be in a critical condition.
Oh really what happened to keeping up with the Joneses you're full of shit.
For some reason, keeping up with the Joneses nowadays seemed to be more seasoned with a cry of “exploitation.”
What freaking "status symbols"are you even talking about ? My mortgage is less than the rent on a 2 bedroom apartment, my car is old enough to rent its own car, the newest phone anyone in my family owns is a hundred dollar track phone and that is 2 years old. We can't afford to go to the movies or on a vacation so we spend the money we eventually save from that for the few "luxury items" we own. My kids saved for 6 months for an Xbox and it was STILL less than the cost of two nights at the beach, dining out twice, and driving there would have been, so they opted for something that would last longer than an ephemeral trip. Average people don't have "status symbols", stop falling for the minority of internet influencers who make it seem tht way, most were well off to begin with!
Let me start with my initial sentence in response to the OP: “There are many contributing factors to our angst.” Followed by “One is…” which does not mean the only factor, nor does it dismiss the varying degree of contributions of these factors to the problem for different individuals and at different times in their lives. The point I’m suggesting is to have a better, more realistic view beyond the simplistic, unproductive blame game of the opposing extremes of laziness of some and the ruthless exploitation by others, which seems to be the view of many. If someone wants more, they should ask what factors (considering all potential factors) are keeping them from having more, then ask themselves if they can change some things to put them in a more favorable position, beyond waiting and hoping for someone to change it for them. If they have done all they can or are willing to do, they should not be afraid to say they tried their best and that they are still standing despite the evils in the world. Unfortunately, there are no guarantees beyond that. The world owes us nothing.
CHAPTER 5. Too Far
Ironically, King Henry's concepts of independence from authority were eventually instilled in the Protestant English mind, eventually leading to the likes of John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe. Had Thomas More's England come to fruition, the United States would likely not have a Declaration of Independence, and its Constitution would read considerably differently. But all good idea can be taken to absurd extremes, causing even rational people to question the intended goodness,