The world we live in today is the result of hundreds of years of human exploration, conflicts, wars and invasions which has left the world divided into almost 200 countries that are in the world today.
And though it might seem that we have settled into a more stable kind of a civilisation, we always keep on hearing about unrest between some countries or the other.
It’s like, the world leaders just don’t want to give it a rest and peace has become this magical, utopian, wonderland that we are showed dreams of, just to keep us hopeful for a future that we have a very slim chance of reaching.
In such times, you just can’t help but wonder if the world will ever become one. Technology is already shrinking our world and bringing us together, but can it help us humans establish a civilisation that is not divided on any basis and we all live as one species?
A United World
A true united world is one where countries do not exist and people have forgotten their differences and have taken the identity of a human being rather than one defined by one’s country.
Therefore there would be a common currency, law, economics, educational system, for the entire world, leading to a simplification of the core areas of human civilisation which everyone could benefit off of.
Such a world could theoretically be driven by growth rather than conflict as the focus would be on the advancement of the human race itself and not of the people of a particular country.
But the talk of a world government inspires fear rather than hope in the minds of people and that is because of the rising mistrust of the public towards their governments. So, it is only natural to think that a one world government, which would have absolute control over the whole world, would be feared rather than wished for.
Does Technology Have An Answer?
As I stated before, technology is already making the world smaller and bringing us closer every day, but it might help us go one step further and create a world government that isn’t a dictatorship.
If a decentralised currency like Bitcoin was adopted as a global currency, it would solve many of the problems that the world has today. Any world government that doesn’t have the power to print money, won’t have much power and hence, no dictator type control.
Also, the entire governance of the whole world could be decentralised which would minimise the role of a world government even more. This article does a brilliant job at explaining how that might be achievable.
Another frequently suggested idea is that AI could one day get so smart that it could run the whole world. In such a scenario, people wouldn’t form a government but computer code would. Of course, we are all aware of the dangers this scenario poses as has been showed to us in many movies.
Will Countries Ever Cease To Exist?
I think a few hundred years down the road or even a few thousand, the people of the world will indeed unite and thus this concept of countries will cease to exist.
With the pace of technology that exists, it is only a matter of time that we solve a lot of the world’s problems and pave the way for a unification that the people of the world will actually want.
Also, when we start venturing out deeper into space and start colonising different planets, a single identity would be so crucial to ensure unity so that we humans could keep pushing our boundaries, together.
Of course this may never happen too in which case, we will just have to put aside our differences and ‘act’ as one while maintaining our individual unique identities and diversities.
Fascinating article!
Cryptocurrency can indeed play a role in supporting the changing nature of governance and jurisdiction, perhaps rendering a boarder-less world with ease of movement and individual autonomy.
I've found the creator of DASH, Evan Duffield to be an interesting source of relfection on matters of governance and the potential future of a boarder-less reality. Recent interview with Evan i found supportive in opening my mind to big world thinking is:
I see potential for Bitcoin to become the world reserve currency of the world. Bitcoin has very much established itself as the cryptocurrency world reserve currency. Maybe this will change, maybe not.
Countries as they exist today operate as Corporations. It's not a commonly discussed topic how our Corporation Countries presently operate...Yet it is well documented that Government Corruption and lack of accountability is a serious problem. Perhaps the approach moving forward is having many parallel systems of governance that are pegged to cryptocurrency...and different applications exist as our pillared structures of support in shaping a free flowing world of support and the best quality accommodations.
Historically, money as debt has been a method of control and regulation to stagnate the creative potential of individual citizens of any given country. For example: South Africa in relationship to the UK. The purchasing power of the pound to rand is: 1 pound equals 17.44 rand. South Africa is rich in natural resources. The UK, not so much. Yet the UK is able to leverage and dare I say pillage the resources of south africa for pennies on the dollar.
You are absolutely right in everything you say and I agree that the world will be moving into a direction where the government will be just another entity (or public corporation) that will take part as an equal with other similar entities run by us the people and cryptocurrency will be a huge part of that.
thanks for your support, best regards.
Countries have come and gone many times, its not a question. They will one day, not exist.
Thanks for your views, I agree! :)
This could happen if we all adopt the same culture or lack of one. Very nice article.
Yeah, a one world state will help in that regards. A single identity.
This reminds me of the song Imagine by John Lennon. In theory it is a great idea. In reality it may never happen. One world currency, one world government and one world religion has been the goal of the elites for generations. Will it happen? Yes. When? I do not know. If you can consolidate people they are easier to control and govern. It has been prophesied in the Bible. Again in theory it makes a lot of sense. But if the wrong hands get a hold of that much power what would our world be like????? Thanks for the great article I enjoyed reading it.
I totally agree. In the wrong hands it will be total dictatorship all over again, but if done rightly it could potentially be a very good thing.
Perhaps it has something to do with this,
https://steemit.com/philosophy/@coloured-content/philosophical-discussion-panel-what-is-ego
(ego)
Yeah, ego definitely is one of the reasons.
This future is possible, but only when people stop worshiping their god, The State. War is the health of the State, as Randolph Bourne wrote, and even in a one-world superstate, there would be wars on drugs or other similar wars against various minority groups and boogeymen to maintain power for the elite.
True
Yeah, that's right. A one state government would have absolute power to start any wars as they like and that is why their role must be minimised and their power must be minimised with the help of technology so they can't just do that.
Good article, but I think that if all countries unite, people will end up using the caste system like in India. The reason some countries are very rich now is because they can exploit third world countries to produce cheap products. So if countries go, caste system will be implemented.
I think having a one world government will actually have the opposite effect. Everyone would share the same identity and there will be free flow of people all around the globe which will lead to a lot of cultural mixing which, in a generation or two, create humans that don't discriminate each other because everyone share a single identity.
voluntary exchanges are preferred
Yup, it will succeed only if people .... do it voluntarily. You see what I did there? ;) :D
:D
Interesting article.
I expect countries-- as geographical and economic constructs-- will gradually cease to exist and be replaced more by an assortment of global "tribes" based more on common interests, values and belief systems, but not on geography. Maybe they will be "techno tribes" or "guilds" that exist as conglomerations that beyond such things as nationalism... now whereas I think they will end up superceding "nations," I'm not sure whether they will be able to escape dominance by "corporations."
That's a really different way to look at things and I like it. It can definitely happen that way. Technology has rendered geographical locations obsolete anyway.
Countries as a social and physical construct will perhaps always exist. As they should. Largely homogenous units are easier to govern. However, on top of this system a new system is already self-developing, and it has been since the day the Internet was made available to the larger public. New global cultural communities have very little to do with geographies. One of the most interesting examples - Netflix doesn't segment content by Geography anymore. It does so via "Taste Communities". Case in point: 90% of all Anime consumed on Netflix is outside of Japan. You can read more here: https://qz.com/939195/netflix-nflx-divides-its-93-million-users-around-the-world-not-by-geography-but-into-1300-taste-communities/
Ok, so you mean that in the future, there will be more interest-based multi groups in the world rather than a single large community of all humans?
Yes, most definitely. In broad strokes, it's already happening - YouTubers, Gamers, Meme-Makers, Instagram Influencers - all of these groups exist and are not bound by geography at all.
sounds like a possibility to me. These groups need to be self sustaining though.
meep
Nation states are obsolete already, unless they are free market leaning and tend to embrace change with emerging technologies and paradigms. Being so inefficient means their days are likely numbered.
Yeah, technology has rendered geography obsolete bringing the world closer together and it will only intensify with mass adoption of crypto tech.
EXactly. The internet started it, and crypto and automation will finish.
Hope so :)
My sentiments exactly :)
I think that as long as governments are alive and well, countries will desire their autonomy and sovereignty.
Yup, governments won't go easily. No one would like to give up their power to create a global state.
its possible , but we have to work as one. not as different states or country's or making war . unite as one everything is possible
Yes, that's true. Technology will help us do that as it has already been.
There is a technological bend to making the world smaller, that is for sure. We can communicate worldwide instantly. This makes us forget about our human nature. We are predisposed to small groups. It is how our brains work. This is why large empires inevitably crumble. People resent being controlled by strangers. Look at the English empire and the USSR for recent examples of crumpling empires.
I foresee a future filled with small city-states something akin to ancient Greece. All of our decentralizing technology can aid each small community prosper and compete.
I truly think the competitive interplay of a thousand city-states would enhance our world much more than some monolithic uber world state ever could. Think of it, not happy with recent legislation or high taxes in your town? Pack up and move to a neighboring city were freedoms are greater with a lower tax burden. Governments would have to be competitive to keep its citizens, not arbitrarily handing down heavy handed edicts from some uber state like the EU where you have no say in the matters of taxation or immigration.
Those are some good points, especially about people wanting to stay in smaller groups. I guess with decentralising technology, we can stay in smaller groups while being a part of a much larger one. So, that way, a one world state would only be for name sake.
I love my country, I love my native language and the diversity of humanity is beautiful and fascinating. But a borderless world seems like the best way to go for the future and globalization is slowly inching us in that direction. Let's not forget that countries as we know them are a fairly recent invention, not "the natural state of affairs".
Such a nice way to put it. I completely agree :)
Thanks :)