Where is the world going?

The economic meltdown is squeezing us all, spanning over the entire world and despite occasional flickers there is no steady light at the end of the tunnel.
So, what is happening? Is it a depression that will end in a year or so, followed by a return to "normal"? Or is it something else altogether?

This is the end of the world, say some. And remember, that is what certain groups and people have been saying for hundreds, probably thousands of years. So far they have all been wrong, and they are wrong this time too.
There is no such thing as the end of the world.

But there may well be an end to the present state of things, the present paradigm. And that "end" may well be imminent. We may see the end of an era - and the start of a new one!

Because after every end there comes a beginning. The end of the great Mongol empire, for example (probably the biggest land mass under one ruler throughout the history of mankind), was followed, in China, by the rise of the Ming dynasty.
The Ottoman empire springing from Turkey was followed by the rise of a number of smaller national states.
The empire of the American Dollar will be followed by something else.

The question is: what kind of a society will we see?
Many people fear it will be a dark age; economic ruin combined with environmental pollution will bring forward the worst in man, leaving us with a world in chaos, lacking organization, jobs and social welfare. Bands of thugs will rule, primitive like beasts, and only the strongest will survive.

But not all believe in such a bleak future. This, in fact, is - they claim - the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, talked about since the 60's and now finally ready to take over.
This will be an era where materialism, over consumption and rapture of the world's resources will be replaced by stress on human relations, peaceful co-existence and harmony with all things created.

Which scenario is true? Well, don't wait and see. Go out and make your own contribution in the right direction! Let's create a future, not of fear and darkness, but of equality, solidarity and empathy.