[Wolfrahm]

What type of crisis would you consider to be best for humanity to overcome in order to "change" (open to your own interpretation)?

It isn't much of a crisis for the whole of humanity unless there's a possibility of our extinction.
Obviously the crisis type the highest chance of us surviving would be "Ourselves" and the crisis type with the highest chance of us getting wiped out would be "Extra-terrestrial threat" (because I highly doubt a space age civilization capable of travelling all the way over here would have a hard time wiping the floor with us, if they so wished).

Take note that ,for example, "Extra-terrestrial threat - alien invasion" indicates the type of crisis (i.e. a crisis involving intelligent extra-terrestrial beings) and then after the dash is an example of the said type of crisis (i.e. an alien invasion).

Also, I know that technically solar flairs and asteroids are of extra-terrestrial origin, so there's no need to point that out.




Here is a explanation of the types:

Ourselves - we are the cause of our own crisis point.

Gradual - the crisis happens over a period of time.

Sudden - the crisis happens suddenly without warning.

Imminent and unavoidable - the crisis' occurrence is imminent (i.e. it hasn't happened yet) and unavoidable (in other words the crisis point is the anticipation of the crisis).

Extra-terrestrial threat - the crisis is a result of intelligent extra terrestrial beings (as apposed to unintelligent extra-terrestrial beings (need I provide examples?)).

None at all - we don't need a crisis to spur us to "change" (self explanatory).

None - humanity wouldn't come out any "better" anyway (self explanatory).

Other/specific - you don't like my options/ you hate my guts/ you want to suggest a more specific type of crisis/ you wanted to click something.




EDIT: just noticed I put "Immanent" instead of "Imminent" in the poll. please excuse that mistake. Also just noticed that there's a limit to the length of the question asked in the poll (that or I mis-typed it)?

 

[TheProcrastinatingMaster]

Assuming we didn't fail of course, fear of an unknown enemy (so aliens) could be a pretty good motivator. We wouldn't even need to meet them, just discover some alien ruins on Mars or something.

Mass Effect here we come!

Mass Effect better be real...

 

[Wolfrahm]

Assuming we didn't fail of course, fear of an unknown enemy (so aliens) could be a pretty good motivator. We wouldn't even need to meet them, just discover some alien ruins on Mars or something.

Mass Effect here we come!

Mass Effect better be real...

 

[theorycraft]

War can change a certain segment of the world, but not its entirety. Sudden global change and immediate/unavoidable disaster is a toss up, theres a chance humanity goes into self destructive chaos. I think an Extraterrestrial threat is the option than can bond humanity and change it for the better. A lot of movies have depicted this type of scenario (Independence Day, Pacific Rim), and its true that we will drop our own prejudice for a moment when facing a common enemy. It also happened during the period after September 11th 2001 in the US. An alien attack on our planet would create that kind of atmosphere, one where we realize how insignificant and meaningless our quarrels are.

 

[merlin89]

The problem is within so nothing from outside can change the inner ourselves.

I think we are now in the middle ages, the age of big cultural, moral and social depression. The monetary system promoting greed is slowly eating itself and humanity. Who knows what lies ahead, but I dont see many optimistic things coming.

We knights of the light are going through tough and difficult times. Our ideas are being put down by pessimists and people that are too happy to see the big picture and understand the mechanisms of monetary system and politics.

About alien attacks: Why would anybody bother with our species, we are harmless, we are still in the primitive stage of fighting each other. Why would intelligent beings even attack some other species?

About September 11th - it was just a trick to start a war.

 

[SA1988]

Well I chose 'gradual' because it was the only one that was realistically considerable. WW3 is another option, I guess. But mainly I think the big 'crisis point' for humanity is going to be when oil starts to run out. We're all expecting it, but nobody at all is even remotely changing their habits. We aren't gonna be ready. Crisis will occur, societies will change quite quickly. Although I don't forecast any major turmoil. People will just make do with less until renewable and nuclear energy begins to be implemented and new electric designs are put in place of the old combustion engined ways.

 

[Chernobog]

What does it matter if an alien invasion happens. Assuming we don't get wiped out and manage to win, the people who fought this war and gained wisdom from it would ultimately die and so their children, then it would all start over and mankind would never learn from its foolishness.
I personally have no shit to give about mankind's fate when I'm gone. My opinion is that with that anomalous brain of ours, we'll never be a balanced species.

 

[Wolfrahm]

About alien attacks: Why would anybody bother with our species, we are harmless, we are still in the primitive stage of fighting each other. Why would intelligent beings even attack some other species?

We may eventually become a threat. Better to deal with us now, rather than later.

 

[Snow]

Well you ask for "best" not "most likely" or even "most realistic."

Currently, our laws of physics strongly rule out aliens as a possibility. Additionally, your post asks "aliens" or "Imminent danger" which would result in the same initial affect (to spur change).

"Best" would be, in my opinion, some huge catastrophe that is very imminent. "Most likely" and "most realistic" and "most comfortably" would obviously be gradual change. Humans are highly adaptable as a species, and even if intelligent solar flares from an alien sun came and spread disease, killing 3/4ths of our 7 billion plus population, we'd be back in full force within a few hundred years.

Part of human adaptability, I think, has been our ability to recognize "harsh" change and mitigate it. We see terrible possibilities and go after them ahead of time (the world wars, disease, economics, internet, terrorism, etc.) even if doing so isn't the "best way" of doing things. Potential examples: unnecessary involvement in war, unnecessary eradication of non-related viruses/bacteria/pests in order to eradicate X disease, extreme economic structures (corrupt capitalism/socialism), government intervention in censorship, etc. etc. etc.

Graduality is fairly inevitable, as we recognize realistic threats and look to deter them in advance.

 

[Wolfrahm]

Currently, our laws of physics strongly rule out aliens as a possibility.

You're welcome to cite these laws.

Additionally, your post asks "aliens" or "Imminent danger" which would result in the same initial affect (to spur change).

Imminent and unavoidable - asteroid impact/solar flare etc. - response: preparations to allow for humanity's survival. There is little prospect of unison. Most likely only a select few would have the means to ensure their own survival. Doesn't require that humanity unite.

Intelligent extra-terrestrial threat - response: requires that all of humanity unite, otherwise there is little, if any, prospect of survival.

It's the point that all of these crises are meant to spur change. That's why I selected these types of crises. The type of change they each spur would be different.

"Best" would be, in my opinion, some huge catastrophe that is very imminent. "Most likely" and "most realistic" and "most comfortably" would obviously be gradual change. Humans are highly adaptable as a species, and even if intelligent solar flares from an alien sun came and spread disease, killing 3/4ths of our 7 billion plus population, we'd be back in full force within a few hundred years.

I like your style.

 

[Randomasd]

Change is always happening on society. Ourselves and "sudden" crisis type happened already and produced big changes. Gradual crisis are always happening too but only a few people give attention to it so change is slow.

I think it would be interesting "Imminent and unavoidable " or "extra-terrestrial threat " because it would change the whole focus of humankind.

Edited because I wrote "immanent" too eh/

 

[DarkWolf]

Alien invasion just because it would be interesting to see the aliens. We know asteroids exist. We know resources aren't infinite. But we do not know who are the aliens that are out there and what they're willing to do and what they're capable of.

We would learn SO MANY interesting new things.

 

[Jennywocky]

We human beings bog ourselves down in trivial BS, not just as a collective but even individually. We not only get comfortable in ruts and don't care to change, we let petty grievances drive rifts between ourselves and feel justified holding grudges or dislikes over trivial matters.

Kind of like when 9/11 happened in the United States, for that one week no one hated each other. There was a crisis, and suddenly you got people taking off work and getting on buses to travel to NYC to help with relief efforts. The impact around Katrina and New Orleans a few years later was not quite as large but still present.

When there's a huge catastrophe that needs to be taken care of, suddenly all the small things disappear or seem less important, and people are more inclined to see how they are similar to the people in need rather than different from each other.

The problem I think is longevity. We do good in dealing with a crisis, but soon enough we drop back into a comfortable rut.

 

[Armez]

People won't change mate. Ever read the graffiti on the walls of Pompei? All that changes is the technology that surrounds us; organic constructs change over incredible expanses of time.


If there is anything that would change people, it would be the massive systemic global collapse of petrol civilization once we've ran out of shit to burn. Even then, it wouldn't "change" the real nature of people, just hit the reset button back to the state of nature.

 

[ADHR26]

Well I chose 'gradual' because it was the only one that was realistically considerable. WW3 is another option, I guess. But mainly I think the big 'crisis point' for humanity is going to be when oil starts to run out. We're all expecting it, but nobody at all is even remotely changing their habits. We aren't gonna be ready. Crisis will occur, societies will change quite quickly. Although I don't forecast any major turmoil. People will just make do with less until renewable and nuclear energy begins to be implemented and new electric designs are put in place of the old combustion engined ways.

Why do people only talk about energy when speaking of oil running out? If we have no oil we also have no plastic which is used in so many things. Seriously try to go through a whole day without using sometime with plastic that is a part of it.

 

[ADHR26]

You're welcome to cite these laws.

I think he means the vastness of the universe makes it extremely unlikely that we will ever meet another intelligent species. Even at the speed of light it would take years to get to even the nearest star to us. Humans will likely never get to another galaxy or even out of our local star cluster, unless we can somehow break physics or at least find a loophole.

 

[bluenlgy]

The biggest crisis point for the entire humanity is, ironically, technology. There will be ONE day where technology will enable each and every human to possess a measure of resources that could be used to transform or destroy other people's life or properties EASILY. Just imagine how long it would take for a common individual to be able to conveniently make a tool that is tantamount, in destruction level, to a nuclear bomb, and you know the exact date and time of the entire world's end-day scenario.

 

[SA1988]

Why do people only talk about energy when speaking of oil running out? If we have no oil we also have no plastic which is used in so many things. Seriously try to go through a whole day without using sometime with plastic that is a part of it.

True point indeed!

I guess we'll have to be a hell of a lot more resourceful with certain things, particularly food and retail packaging - the biggest waste of plastic on the planet :mellow:

 

[DemonD]

Essentially humans will use use up all the earth's resources, be surprised that it happened and fall into despair.

So if that could not happen, I think it would benefit a lot.

 

[DarkBarlow]

Global EMP for the win!

The Butlerian Jihad scenario: Technology is a double edged sword and computer technology, while making things much more efficient, comes at the price of reliance on those systems and cuts self reliance out of the picture. Something as basic as food, everyone's so apathetic about it...Can you skin a deer? Cultivate a garden? Know what's growing wild and safe to eat?

If the shelves at WalMart were to empty tomorrow what's the plan? Wait for government to do something about it? Excuse me a moment while I wipe tears of laughter...

This scenario would do the trick then we can all be Frank Herbert characters. I have dibs on Miles Teg.

Side note: I hope Brian Herbert burns in Hell. Thank you.