The future isn't just better technology.

I often run into people who seem to assume that the future will be just like the present except for better technology. People who seem to think that massive changes in human society are not possible in their lifetimes.

If you think that, you are wrong.

The grandparents of your grandparents were born into a world where most people did not use money in their daily lives. When our great-grandparents were born, Russia had a Tsar, the Middle East was ruled by a Sultan in Istanbul, women could not vote anywhere in the world, and the British Empire was the world's superpower. When the Civil Rights Act was passed, there were still some people alive who had been born slaves. Both World Wars and the Cold War all happened within one human lifetime. The vast majority of people live in a country which did not exist in the time of their grandparents.

When our parents were children, most of the world was not capitalist. It is entirely possible that, by the time our children are old, most of the world will no longer be capitalist.

#foodforthought