“What was it like being in space? What did you think about? Didn’t it get boring?”
“Probably the major feeling I had was how insignificant I am, and how we are, when you realize what infinitesimal specks we are on our planet, in our galaxy, and in our universe. But then each of us thinks of ourselves as being all-important and having infinite worth. Some of us believe that we have been placed here by a divine creator and some of us believe that we are mere bits of cosmic dust, nearly 14 billion years removed from the Big Bang. Are we only remnants of billions of evolutionary processes who are still evolving. Or are we at the end of our evolution, rapidly becoming the victims of the suicide or our species?
“Little did Edwin Hubble know, when he confirmed that the universe has been expanding since the Big Bang, that he would have a space telescope named for him and that the findings of that telescope guided me on a human’s farthest voyage into the universe. While I wasn’t able to even reach the outermost planet of our solar system, and certainly could not approach a planet outside of our system, the work of Hubble and his namesake telescope have been incredibly important in making this voyage possible.
“The telescope can measure the distances to 18 galaxies, some as far as 65 million light years away. Since light travels at 186,000 miles per second a light year is about 6 trillion miles. That’s a long way! It’s incomprehensible. It must be halfway to infinity! We are getting more information and proof of dark matter and dark energy so we are getting a better picture of the dynamics of the universe and of its beginning.”
“We know the speed of light. What’s the speed of dark? Couldn’t resist that! By the way Commander, do you know that the U.S. national debt is over 15 trillion dollars. That’s a lot of money. Even more incomprehensible than the expanse of the galaxies. Fifteen trillion dollar bills, that if laid end to end, could reach Mars and return to Earth about 1300 times.”
“But that’s another problem, Chet. Let’s get back to the universe. Measuring the expansion of the universe it is now possible to see that the universe is almost 14 billion years old. 13.7 to be exact. We have seen 1,500 galaxies in various stages of development. Some as
old as 10 billion years. And it all started from a small bit of matter, probably smaller than a teaspoonful. In about a trillionth of a second the Big Bang exploded into the seeds of our expanding universe. At least that’s the thinking now!
“Since the Big Bang, millions of species have evolved and died out, usually from things beyond their control. Our species also seems to be heading to oblivion, and it’s our own fault. We have used a great many of our irreplaceable natural resources and we have polluted our water, our air and even our stratosphere.
MAKING A BETTER LIFE
“Do we have even a faint hope of saving ourselves from extinction? If so can we make a better life for our species. There were a few glimmers of hope, like when I found that there was water on Enceladus, one of Saturn’s moons, but to get the necessary heat to support human life would have required us to dig deeply into its crust. That, and the fact that it is only a few miles wide and takes seven years to get there, rules it out for a future home for our excess population. Maybe some day a time machine or an astral travel mechanism can be invented that would make emigration there a possibility. But that won’t solve today’s emergency. The fact is that the human race is approaching extinction because we are raping our Mother Earth.”
“That seems rather pessimistic commander. Your voyage began with such great hope.
Have you given up?”
“Not at all. I sincerely believe that we have a real hope for our future, but it can’t be realized unless people can see the problems, understand their consequences and solutions, and are willing to cooperate immediately to save us from ourselves. But the solutions would require that the richer people of the world give up some advantages that they have traditionally enjoyed. They certainly must think of working more years before retiring. They need to adopt a toned down appetite for the that many people equate with the good life—like housing opulence, when a smaller dwelling would do. And probably most important, a state mandated reproductive control. This would probably only have to last for a couple of generations until the world’s population came under control and people would finally recognize the increasing scarcity of Mother Nature’s blessings and work to conserve what we have left. It goes without saying that we must severely reduce the negative excesses with which our so-called advanced societies have polluted the planet. As the historian Arnolds Toynbee said, ‘The human race’s prospects of survival were considerably better when we were defenseless against tigers than they are today when we have become defenseless against ourselves.’
“When people are too blind to see or when their vision is too narrow to focus, we have real problems in getting things done. There are none so blind as those who refuse to see. The intellectually blind stonewall any real progress because they cannot see alternatives.
Their minds are made up before the issue is even stated. Getting the ignorant to think is like leading an army or rocks. There won’t be any movement.
“In spite of the fact that human history is largely a chronicle of tragedy, with wars and natural disasters killing millions upon millions, people keep thinking that things will get better even though the evidence is stacked against it in an impenetrable wall. Every scientific and historical fact shows that we cannot survive with this many people, even if we significantly reduce our opulent way of living. We can dream the impossible dream with Don Quixote, the man of La Mancha, but the dream that we can support the present world population in the style of the average Californian is not only ephemeral, its reality can never be. We may be mesmerized by a hope for our future, but death is sure if we don’t skid to a stop in our population growth. Then we must quickly get it into reverse if we are to survive. It is my mission to get the people to understand the reality of impending doom if we don’t change course quickly. Too many people are like the queen in Alice in Wonderland who said that sometimes she believed in six impossible things before breakfast. We have to make people believe in the possible and make the necessary changes in their national objectives and in their personal lives. We have got to do it—not just dream or talk.”
“As I remember Toynbee also said, in his best psychological insight, ‘A life which does not go into action is a failure.’ Sounds to me like you are ready to go into action.”
“Ya, that was one of his observations that got me charged up to do something. But it’s not enough to just save our species. Nearly all human lives can be happier and more productive.
Ashley Montague, my favorite social thinker, and Sigmund Freud, not one of my favorites, agree that for our mental health we need the ability to love and to work. Mental health is certainly a key to happiness, but there is so much more.”
“People have been warning against robbing and trashing our planet for decades and little has been done. How would you expect to make a difference Commander?”
“I would hope that my relatively high profile will get me an audience. The U2 singer Bono got a worldwide audience because he was a famous musician. Bill and Melinda Gates had notoriety because of their vast wealth and philanthropy, and the way Microsoft had changed the world. Mother Theresa gained unwanted fame through her quiet charity. I don’t have the rabid following of a famous rock singer, or the reputation of a genius or a saint. I don’t have the riches to make a rapid change in a society’s economy or health. But I have been on the international stage through the news media daily for a number of years. And I do have the passion to help humanity if I can.”
“How would you start your crusade?”
“Well, it’s about the three Es—ethics, economics and education. Certainly voluntary population control has come to many countries that have a high standard of living because of the people’s education and economic means. Their ethics, relative to having children, have often been based on a self-centered system of morals.”
“Are you saying
that recognizing our selfishness is imperative to limiting the population?”
“No, but it is important. Women who want careers may not want children. The joys of professional success may be more meaningful for some than the potential joy of having children. Most sociological and psychological studies show that childless marriages are generally happier than those with children. Of course many marriages are greatly enriched by children. “Another disadvantage of having children, for some people, is the cost of having and raising a child. For a middle class family in the United States the cost is calculated to be 150 to 450 thousand dollars plus college costs. British studies estimate child raising costs to be 60 to 250 thousand pounds to age 17. These costs obviously include food, clothing and medical care, but they probably also include pre-school expenses, a bigger home, more electricity, summer camps, a car when the child gets to high school, increased insurance costs, and a number of other expenses. These expenses hit hard at the poor, but they also impact the middle class families who are aspiring to be upwardly mobile—keeping up with the Joneses.”
“So economics is a major factor in reducing family size?”
“Yes, that and the realization of the costs of children—in time and in money. If you are a middle class couple, having a child will probably preclude your taking that trip around the world, enjoying some operas in Verona or Milan, spending a week at Club Med, or relaxing after work with a good book. Many people realize that what they want out of life is more likely to be realized without children—or without a partner. But tradition is deeply ingrained in most of us. To break that tradition by being unmarried or childless will likely make us the objects of scorn by those wedded to society’s traditions.”
“So you are saying that selfishness is not necessarily bad?”