Hope, more growing pains, more emphasis (part four)

(concluding part five tomorrow)

Something for Hope to Stand Upon



   Technology, the internet, social media and the whole genre of however you may refer to the collective phenomena that has given us this opening that we've never had before, one may say is beyond refreshing. In 2005, Thomas Friedman declared that the world was flat (Friedman, 2005). This leveling of the playing field will do more to blur capitalism, communism, socialism, etc. than anything else ever had the possibility. Look with the governments of the world at this time. An evolution has taken place. Based on what works best for most economies is a sort of democratic capitalistic socialism. In the last quarter-century, we find that the majority of countries have moved in this direction. The same kind of self-serving self-interest will likely move the rest of the world in similar fashion concerning trade, the construction and structure of law and all the other nuances that go into a “self-sustaining", respectable country. In addition, the reason why is because we do not need to bludgeon each other any longer about such things. If you think you have a better way, try it. If you are right, we will all move in your direction. We have only to look at the mutations of communism in countries with as much potential as Russia and China to witness for ourselves how differently things can play out. Lessons learned from this alone include expanses of infertile planes versus ports and coastline, the centralization or not, and the management styles of the government, and how trade interactions occurred or not, just to name a few.
   Such colossal movements need colossal conversations, and naturally, they need colossal forums. It becomes a subjective opinion as to where you want to go back and what you want to point to; the telegraph would be a great example of technology, the summits involved in the World Wars would be great examples of diplomacy. The establishment of the United Nations is likely as good place to start as any. Notice the evolution; for soon after the UN was established, we saw other world organizations slowly come into being. At the level of community or group we also saw global charities established. The Hunger Project was likely the first truly global charity that was both secular and without government backing (The Hunger Project, February, 1977). We are now in a time where the world has George Soros’ and Richard Branigans’; individual collections of wealth finding inspiration to coordinate and/or create charity. The Giving Pledge, aka the $600 Billion Dollar Challenge, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, dares others to join in the philanthropy (Buffett & Gates, 2010). And giving doesn’t have to be in the form of enormous wealth; the intellectual prowess of Jeff Sach’s work, the celebrity power of a Bono and so forth have been making transformational changes.
   That social media will continue its difference-making, monetization has extended into this arena; with celebrity endorsement and corporate alignments joining the movement. The ability to rally and feel good around causes is likely in the midst of developing best practices. This will address over time lessons learned regarding pace, timing and the like; avoiding or minimizing charity weariness, etc.
   Countries and cultures will longer evolve in a vacuum.