
When we look at the human history we can notice that historical eras form a pattern marked by periodic incline and decline of societal, political, economic and moral development that can be depicted in the form of the sinusoid wave.
Where are we now?
Contemporary history begun around the 1945 and continues till now. The 21st century has been marked by growing globalization. Governments become dictatorial, the people are becoming more socialistic and political correctness is no longer an option, it’s a mandate. Across the world we can observe political, economic, ecological, social and moral decline combined with a rapid expansion of communications and technology.
In my opinion, humanity is currently climbing the sine wave. COVID-19 may seem like the end of the world and some of us draw apolitical visions based either on biblical prophecies or sci-fi movies.
Throughout the centuries, humanity has been experiencing multiple changes ranging from periods of enlightenment and periods of weakness of reason. Pre-historic era begun just 3 millions years ago with the appearance of humans and ended at around 3000 BC giving birth to the Ancient history with the invention of writing system known as Sumerian Cuneiform Script. During this period humans started shifting from a lifestyle of hunting and gathering to one of farming and settlement. This was a period of time of the academic discipline when humans learned how to grow and harvest crops, domesticate animals and live in permanent constructions. Neolithic societies were relatively simple and egalitarian but farming and domestication of animals lead to dramatic increase in social inequality in most of the areas where it occurred. This First Agricultural Revolution lead to exponential increase of world population and Neolithic societies started becoming hierarchical and increasingly violent due to grid.
Middle Ages lasted from the 5th to the 15th century. This era began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and merged into the Renaissance. This period was marked with population decline, collapse of centralized authority, invasions, and mass migrations of tribes. The Late Middle Ages was marked by starvation, plague, and war, which significantly diminished the population of Europe; between 1347 and 1350, the Black Death killed about a third of Europeans.
After that came Renaissance: the “rebirth” of classical culture. This era of enlightenment begun in the 14th century and extending into the 16th. This is the period when significant discoveries were made and led to cultural, scientific, economic and technological growth. Feudalism and power of Catholic Church declined and capitalist economy emerged. By the 18th century, the accumulation of knowledge and technology brought the Industrial Revolution and began the Late Modern Period, which started around 1800 and has continued through the present.
I believe that currently we are reaching the Cyber-Era. The new age of enlightenment, where science, technology and knowledge will prevail but lives of many will be perished. I see it as a new form of survival of the fittest. Our Planet is no longer able to handle mediocre minds, selfishness and grid. We need leaders who are well educated, progressive and able to see things from perspective.
What puzzles me is that so many intelligent people still do not trust scientific data and create their own theories instead of following the lead of experts. For those who hold to their wealth, not adaptive habits and selfish believes – it will the end of the world.
Dr. Ewa J. Antczak
March 21, 2020