Who we are

• Charismatic sociopaths: unrestrained, unidentified.
• Traditions based on dogma led or co-opted by sociopaths.
• Societies whose populations exceed what natural resources can sustain.
• Individuals in the mirror who fear discovering the unknown more than they do certain death by mushroom cloud.

Each of these can be moderated by education. Population growth is now a horse race. Less-affluent, less-educated societies are doubling their numbers periodically, as the affluent ones stabilize. Nature's limits will ultimately restrain population growth via pestilence, famine, war, and genocide. Leveling the economic playing field for all humanity would seem to be a useful avenue toward peace.


"What is so deeply painful about terrorism is that our enemies, whom we see as evil, view themselves as saints and martyrs. As such, religious terrorism is more than a threat to national security. It is psychological and spiritual warfare, requiring a psychologically and spiritually informed response. ..." Jessica Stern (An on-the-ground researcher who personally interviewed terrorists from Oklahoma City to the Middle East).

As long as we station troops or fire away with drones in the Middle East, insurgents will aim at us. Although we deplore remote (collateral) killings in pursuit of al Qiada, in totally human-survival terms today it may be the lessor of two evils. We can only hope the short-term gains are worthwhile over the long run against the hatred drone warfare generates. This equation may be impossible to balance in which case conflict will continue at least until the oil runs out, and maybe beyond.

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