Futurist author George Gilder summed it up best when he recognized that humanity is finally beginning to realize that ideas are the true fuel of civilization. Just yesterday, raw materials seemed to be the lifeblood that pumped through the veins of society. Now fused particles of free sand convey billions of instructions a second in this information age, making it possible for ideas to go from the drawing table to the public without the cranking of metal gears on the production line. In fact, it s amazing to believe that Wall Street has it right when companies that are still wet behind the ears and only exist on the Internet are worth more than the decades-old Smoke Stock 500 Companies of America. Sometimes I wonder if this is a turning point in civilization, when pure thought finally allows us to detach ourselves from a constant preoccupation with physical goods and satisfaction.
Humanity seems to be reaching a critical juncture.
If everyone had a three-bedroom house with a yard, the entire livable space on planet Earth would be covered. Instead, by evolving into a society that measures progress by the purity of free thought and action rather than by the number of new highways, we may be able to live without destroying the world. Copyright 1999, Mind Like Water, Inc., all rights reserved, worldwide.