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Our western economies manage to flourish because people buy products, use them for awhile and then throw them away and buy a new one. As technology keeps getting more sophisticated, particularly in electronic equipment, cameras, televisions, computers, etc. you can buy a product and it's obsolete in several years and ends up in a landfill. I'm not saying that I don't want technology to advance but we'll reach a point when certain materials are just too valuable to throw away and they will have to be recycled because it's going to be too expensive to get the raw materials.
There is so much building going on in China that there has even been shortages of concrete and I read that some sections of a new freeway they were building in Phoenix when I lived there had to be delayed because they couldn't get the concrete delivered on time due to the worldwide shortage. I think we're just seeing the beginning stages of the depletion of our natural resources and it will continue to get worse.
You are right on China. I know steel, copper and most electronic raw materials are in short supply, or have prices which are adjusted each day due to demand. They have a booming machine going wide open. We really need to wake up to the future.
I had expected a few people to post some comments about religious events that they believe may happen in this century which is why I left it as an open question. I think this one is going to get moved into the Politics forum.
I had expected a few people to post some comments about religious events that they believe may happen in this century which is why I left it as an open question. I think this one is going to get moved into the Politics forum.
I had one of mine threads moved here; it is sure a lot more hostile than our good old R&P. I think it is hell for bad threads . I was glad when mind died off so I could make a tactical retreat till after the election was over.
I had expected a few people to post some comments about religious events that they believe may happen in this century which is why I left it as an open question. I think this one is going to get moved into the Politics forum.
IMO "religious events" happen all the time, EVEYWHERE. Please define this term?
The largest obstacle to mankind has, and always will be Ignorance. The ignorance of seeing God as seperate from oneself, and therefore seeing others as seperate. This breeds all manner of horror which we have experienced for centuries.
Location: In a place with little freedom (aka USA)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MontanaGuy
This could be a religious or a philosophical question, depending on your point of view. I have some thoughts on the subject and then feel free to comment on what I've said or state what you consider to be the greatest threat to mankind in this century.
I see two threats that would top my list. One is the proliferation of weapons and the increasing sophistication of military technology with greater destructive capabilities. Another threat that really isn't talked about much is the possibility that nations could end up going to war over the dwindling supply of natural resources and raw materials. Let me explain this threat in a little more detail. One natural resource that we're all dependent on and is skyrocketing in price is of course oil. Now that nations like China, India and others have modernized at a rapid rate in recent years there is a greater need for fuel than ever but all of the oil that was easy to get at has already been depleted and there is a finite amount of oil in the world. Of course we should have been planning for the future after the seventies oil crisis but we didn't. It's not just oil that nations need, it's all of the raw materials like copper and other metals and all of the other countless materials that manufacturers use for all of the products we buy.
What I'm really getting at here is that it's not possible for the entire world to live in the manner that Europeans and Americans have been doing for decades. There simply aren't enough natural resources available for that to happen. At some point the lifestyles that we're all accustomed to will become unsustainable as more and more nations compete for a dwindling supply of raw materials and the results could be catastrophic.
Anyway, those are my thoughts about it, what do you think?
There has never been a threat to mankind and never will. People love to live in fear it seems. Why not though right? When we are scared we spend money! Its all a dirty business. Its the business of fear. Fear makes people money.
I had one of mine threads moved here; it is sure a lot more hostile than our good old R&P. I think it is hell for bad threads . I was glad when mind died off so I could make a tactical retreat till after the election was over.
Wellcome to the full contact forum.
In response to the initial question I think cultural differences, and the fear of "outsiders" will be the greatest threat to mankind. I think economics and scarcity will not have nearly the negative impact some suspect due to technological advances.
But we still won't particularly get along very well.
Desalination plant clears hurdle : North County Times - Californian (http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/06/07/news/sandiego/11_31_046_6_07.txt - broken link)
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. I was glad when mind died off so I could make a tactical retreat till after the election was over. 
