Why Civilizations Fall

In the story of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, the main character, Hank Morgan, a mechanic in an arms manufacturing plant wakes up one day in King Arthur's England. He does everything he can to advance the backwardness of the peasants and royalty alike, but in the end it all comes to naught, as the people are forgetful and more comfortable in their ignorance. All of the advancements he made to the civilization in which he found himself was wasted, and there's the nugget of truth for today's civilization.

Advanced as we've become, we are hurtling backwards into a new dark age.

Isaac Schrödinger  writes sparingly about this very topic, as he does with everything he writes. Click through the links on this post for details  He uses a minimum amount of words for the maximum effect.

Why did the Roman Empire fall apart? One important reason is that the people who built and forged the institution had long been dead by the end. Men like Scipio couldn't reach out and teach the later offspring about life and how to wage war.

Take a simple example at the micro level: At my high school, I once saw a kid sitting with his African parents. The kid wasn't doing well in his courses. The parents spoke perfect English, were sharply dressed and exuded class. This made an ugly contrast with the boy: shirt half-out, slumped in the chair on to his right side, mumbling on how he'll really do better this time.

His parents just couldn't understand. They had sacrificed so much for him. They both worked full-time. They understood how hard life is. They had provided him with so many comforts and opportunities. They had enrolled him in a school in the West. But what was the result? He regularly skipped classes, cheated on assignments and was failing two out of four courses.

Why! How! It didn't make sense. This kid was living a life of luxury better than what 99.99% of humanity could dream of. Why was he pissing over every chance he was given?

Upon learning history, the question answers itself.

Every institution in this country is corrupt, slothful, and failing in its basic responsibility to the generations to follow.  A nation built upon optimism and faith, which sloughs off its beliefs will descend into hedonism, decadence and fatalism.

Wake up and strengthen the things which remain.