I posted a thread last week, eliciting predictions about the far future (2000 years) given what we know has transpired in the recent past and given the pace of scientific and technological advancements. See https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-150777.0.html. I was horrified to get the following responses;

Ruby_Pearl:

I see myself not caring.

In the next decades I won't be here, so why should I worry about the next 2000 years. rubbish.

echelon:

I don't give a damn about what the world will look like in 2000years time because I'm not staying that long.

Huxley you'd probably take up a career in philosophy

Not only did these fail to address the question I had posited, they also revealed a callous disregard for the welfare of generations to come. That got me wondering whether this attitude was more wide-spread and strongly held amongst members of Nairaland or Africans.

Basically, how far into the future should we care about the plight of the world? If your concerns were only restricted to the next few decades, what economic, social, environmental, educational and developmental policies would you disregard as a result of your limited care and concern?

Case in point: NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is currently investing billions of dollars investigating ways of securing the earth against asteroid impact. Given that such impacts have happen many times in the past and that it is a certainty that it will happen again, is this a worthwhile endeavour?


Are there a class of people who are only concerned about their own short-term welfare and how does this attitude bode for the construction of a well-balanced and egalitarian society?

huxley:

In the light of what we have achieved in such a relatively short time since the dawn of modern science and technologies, what is your vision for the world in 2000 years from now?

The tone of the sentence in bold suggests you are talking of positive projections alone and not the negative ones.

huxley:

Basically, how far into the future should we care about the plight of the world? If your concerns were only restricted to the next few decades, what economic, social, environmental, educational and developmental policies would you disregard as a result of your limited care and concern?

Do not be horiffied. I do have environmental concerns so I work and live not to impact the environment too negatively. I'm concerned at what the oil companies are doing to our environment by their E&P activities, I'm concerned about the long term effect of CO2 emmitted in the environment.

What I'm saying is that I can't sit down and waste my time thinking about what the world will be like in 2000 years time. I'd rather do something about things I don't like or act to make things the way I want them to be

huxley:

Case in point: NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) is currently investing billions of dollars investigating ways of securing the earth against asteroid impact. Given that such impacts have happen many times in the past and that it is a certainty that it will happen again, is this a worthwhile endeavour?

No. To me, it's not a worthwile endeavour. They should invest all that money in people. Billions of people all over the world are suffering in abject poverty.

dunno.

leave it to God i guess.