Asimov would be very disappointed with what has become of humanity. Even though food production has increased, it has been used ineffectively. Tons of food are wasted in "super-sizing" everything while countries around the world have massive famines and are too poor to do anything about it. The humane solution would be to share that food but countries are too greedy and won't send it for free.
Usually these famine stricken countries are also overpopulated. Asimov had accurately predicted that we would overpopulate and warned that we should implement population control. Some countries have enforced this like China with success but did it too well so there aren't enough young people. But other countries like India have no population control and families are having too many children to sustain themselves. Many countries, like ours though, don't enforce control but encourage a 2 child limit. This is what Asimov would have wanted, 30 years ago.
In Asimov's world without war, he says that only countries that can afford the gas can fight. Well that is happening now. All wars that you hear about in the news now are coming from the Middle East. So as our lifetime is concerned there can not be a world without war. But each area of the world has their time to fight. Europe had over 2000 years, we are in the middle of our period, and now the Middle East has started theirs. So we should not be too concerned until the half hour war is a possibility there.
Asimov, in his lecture, announces that most of his thinking could have been created in syllogisms. For example he gives a couple of syl. about the energy in the world. We will eventually use all the coal and oil in the world because we use some everyday and it is not unlimited. Basically he is saying that syllogisms are created and result in logic. Anybody could figure these problems out if they look at them logically.
Overall Asimov is accurate in his assumptions and predictions. Some of his ideas, especially about women needing "busy work", are a bit outdated. But one needs to remember that this lecture did take place over 30 years ago and ideals back then were different than they are now.
If I missed a large point, bear with me. There was so much to talk about that I may post another blog about this topic whether it count or not. This man is great witted and still has the amazing ideas that I wish to create some day.
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aka I agree with what I put down
ReplyDeleteI agree with alot of your points, Tom. Asimov was a man from our time, but situated in a time short before where his ideas would be widely accepted.
ReplyDeleteIt is also true how many of the wars we see now are in the middle-east; the places where one of their exports is crude oil. They also have the money to support such endevours, and how now we simply sit back and watch the fireworks go off trying to avoid war ourselves due to economic reasoning.
It's also well of you to point out the famine ad thet populaton outburst going out in the world. The fact that thousands die of faime daily with no resolve really is an impressive shock factor.
Also, yeah. This one particular blog question was slightly awkward to answer in anything other than fragmented individual paragraphs.