Samtonia
01-02-2007, 05:32
Chapter 4: On the formation of the Commonality
As Earth's population rose in the mass exodus from its surface, the well-off were able to secure passage with relative ease. For most of the industrialized world, their populations could be moved from Earth to a number of colony worlds. But what about the rest of the planet?
What about the homeless and displaced across the Western world? What about the poor, huddled refugee masses of some Eastern European nations? What about the starving throngs of Africa, the impoverished of the Caribbean and South America? Were Earth's less fortunate people doomed to the rapidly degenerating world that was being left behind?
For a broad swath of those people, yes. As riots and civil wars intensified across the globe, with nations often under siege by the throngs of refugees attempting to gain access to their colony ships and escape from the planet, the stage was set for the most stunning application of Charles Darwin's theory yet to be seen.
Natural selection was the name of the game. With no colonies waiting for themselves, the billions left without hope tried desperately to gain access to colonization ships. And those who were cunning, skilled, or sometimes just lucky enough to get on board did- and a vast amalgamation of stowaways crept on board with the crew and passengers of many colony ships. Vast amounts died- the journey was treacherous and, depending on the ship they had stowed away on, discovery could often mean death. no one should have made it- they should have died en-route.
But human beings are hardy, and a surprising number managed to get off-planet before its collapse. Some were accepted by the society that they had stowed away with. But many were jailed and sent off planet- they were not a fit for the orderly and proper societies that saw them as leeches stuck to their communities. But one colony accepted this detritus of human society- with open arms. A colony of Quakers, members from all around the world, was one of the only planets that allowed access to the refugees.
And so they came. Their numbers swelled, and the Quakers were quickly a small minority on the planet. These discordant cultures, this stew of languages should never have worked out- but it did. It worked for the simple fact that every inhabitant knew that it was not religion, not their culture that had led them to life and a continued existence- no, it was their own choices. Their own decisions. They, themselves, had saved their own lives.
how then, the leap to Universal Darwinism? The records are muddled on this. Perhaps it was Latin American intellectuals who brought the knowledge of Charles Darwin with them. Perhaps it was some refugee who found solace in the extensive writings collected by the Quakers, who saw and understood that it was Darwinistic selection that had led to this new society's creation. The exact details are shrouded in the past- whatever the case, the tenets of Universal Darwinism were soon embraced by a huge section of the populace.
Universal Darwinism, that belief that Charles Darwin's laws apply not only to small groups of animals but to cultures and civilizations as well, certainly saw its growth through the teachings of Dr. Enrique Chavez, a brilliant thinker and speaker who gave a name to the common belief held by the planet: they had survived, they had brought their cultures with them and kept their norms and values alive because they had the right stuff. In animals, it was passed on in the form of genes. For humanity, it was passed on in culture and knowledge, in social norms and values. Those that survived and got off planet deserved to have their societies continue- those left behind did not and faded away.
Heady stuff. Indeed, the writings of early 21st-century societies points to this idea as perhaps being viewed as barbaric or needlessly cold. Their societies never had to go through a near extinction, never needed to flee their very home planet- and so it may have seemed a laughable notion at the time. But now, Universal Darwinism is the only option. In a hostile universe, adrift in the vast depths of space, humanity needs its guiding principle- the fittest will survive. And perhaps the continued success of the Darwinistic Commonality is the best and most fitting memorial to this idea- for in Universal Darwinism, we find our salvation.
-From the writings of Dr. Ignatius Hoellenheuz;
"On Universal Darwinism and the Commonality"
As Earth's population rose in the mass exodus from its surface, the well-off were able to secure passage with relative ease. For most of the industrialized world, their populations could be moved from Earth to a number of colony worlds. But what about the rest of the planet?
What about the homeless and displaced across the Western world? What about the poor, huddled refugee masses of some Eastern European nations? What about the starving throngs of Africa, the impoverished of the Caribbean and South America? Were Earth's less fortunate people doomed to the rapidly degenerating world that was being left behind?
For a broad swath of those people, yes. As riots and civil wars intensified across the globe, with nations often under siege by the throngs of refugees attempting to gain access to their colony ships and escape from the planet, the stage was set for the most stunning application of Charles Darwin's theory yet to be seen.
Natural selection was the name of the game. With no colonies waiting for themselves, the billions left without hope tried desperately to gain access to colonization ships. And those who were cunning, skilled, or sometimes just lucky enough to get on board did- and a vast amalgamation of stowaways crept on board with the crew and passengers of many colony ships. Vast amounts died- the journey was treacherous and, depending on the ship they had stowed away on, discovery could often mean death. no one should have made it- they should have died en-route.
But human beings are hardy, and a surprising number managed to get off-planet before its collapse. Some were accepted by the society that they had stowed away with. But many were jailed and sent off planet- they were not a fit for the orderly and proper societies that saw them as leeches stuck to their communities. But one colony accepted this detritus of human society- with open arms. A colony of Quakers, members from all around the world, was one of the only planets that allowed access to the refugees.
And so they came. Their numbers swelled, and the Quakers were quickly a small minority on the planet. These discordant cultures, this stew of languages should never have worked out- but it did. It worked for the simple fact that every inhabitant knew that it was not religion, not their culture that had led them to life and a continued existence- no, it was their own choices. Their own decisions. They, themselves, had saved their own lives.
how then, the leap to Universal Darwinism? The records are muddled on this. Perhaps it was Latin American intellectuals who brought the knowledge of Charles Darwin with them. Perhaps it was some refugee who found solace in the extensive writings collected by the Quakers, who saw and understood that it was Darwinistic selection that had led to this new society's creation. The exact details are shrouded in the past- whatever the case, the tenets of Universal Darwinism were soon embraced by a huge section of the populace.
Universal Darwinism, that belief that Charles Darwin's laws apply not only to small groups of animals but to cultures and civilizations as well, certainly saw its growth through the teachings of Dr. Enrique Chavez, a brilliant thinker and speaker who gave a name to the common belief held by the planet: they had survived, they had brought their cultures with them and kept their norms and values alive because they had the right stuff. In animals, it was passed on in the form of genes. For humanity, it was passed on in culture and knowledge, in social norms and values. Those that survived and got off planet deserved to have their societies continue- those left behind did not and faded away.
Heady stuff. Indeed, the writings of early 21st-century societies points to this idea as perhaps being viewed as barbaric or needlessly cold. Their societies never had to go through a near extinction, never needed to flee their very home planet- and so it may have seemed a laughable notion at the time. But now, Universal Darwinism is the only option. In a hostile universe, adrift in the vast depths of space, humanity needs its guiding principle- the fittest will survive. And perhaps the continued success of the Darwinistic Commonality is the best and most fitting memorial to this idea- for in Universal Darwinism, we find our salvation.
-From the writings of Dr. Ignatius Hoellenheuz;
"On Universal Darwinism and the Commonality"