A WORLD IN NEED OF CHANGE (part-1)

Artical by AJAY MEENA

The past century has been the most turbulent un man’s history. That is undeniable. Fifty million people died in the two World Wars alone. Additionally, there have been millions of deaths due to racially or politically motivated  massacres in Africa and Asia. Violent revolutions subjected more than a third of the world’s population tototalitarian political rule and, to this day, constant human rights abuses take place in many developing nations. IT doesn’t take much imagination to think that some change occurred in man, something that turned him into a violent, uncaring and dangerous being.

The lessons of history world question that premise, for man has often resorted to war and revolution to solve his problems. Yet never have the results of war been so destructive. And  never have the consequences of man’s other actions been so potentially disastrous. 

Something about man has changed.

Something caused a deterioration in man’s sense of community. People today can live in an area for years and never know their neighbors. long-held social values such as chanty have been replaced by alienation. The United Nations reports that more than one hundred million people lead isolated livesm without ties to family, work or community.

Something affected society’s attitude towards marriage and divorce, In 1895, there were fifteen marriages to every divorce. In 1990, there were two marriages for every divorce, a drastic change.

Something has cased this disregard for the earth itself. More than two-and-a-half million square miles of forest have been denuded. With every passing second, an area of rain forest the size of a football field is cut down. And   hundreds of species of birds, mammals and other creatures have become extinct, never to be seen again.

Something has led man to spend more money on drugs today than he does on food. More and more people depend upon drugs to relieve their ailments, escape boredom and prop up their ability to face the day. Even children now take drugs. And millions more are given tranquilizers in the classroom, justified by a fictitious condition called “hyperactivity.” What has changed man’s attitudes about dealing with existence to the point where he rubs a chemical salve on every part of his life?

Something has sparked a sharp increase in man’s violence towards his fellows. In Los Angeles, for instance, 150,000 of the city’s youth belong to gangs and, of these, 80 percent have been wounded by gunfire at least once! Man has always had rituals of manhood where young men were welcomed into adulthood and adult society. Never before have these rituals required bullet wounds.

More violent, more callous, more careless, more antisocial . . . what has happened to man?

One could blame science and technology. These have magnified man’s ability to affect himself, his fellows his environment and all lfie. Sure, we have always had wars, but technology now allows wars capable of total destruction. Yet technology now allows wars capable of total destruction. Yet technology also conquers disease to prolong life, raises standards of living and creates many other positive effects. While it increases man’s capability for evil, it also increases his power for good.

No, undoubtedly the change is within man himself. The something, whatever it is, has affected the ways in which man thinks, and the ways in which he behaves.