Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!wuarchive!decwrl!vixie!avsd!childers
From: childers@avsd.UUCP (Richard Childers)
Newsgroups: comp.society.futures
Subject: Re: Global Cultural Prototype
Message-ID: <2145@avsd.UUCP>
Date: 11 Oct 89 18:58:36 GMT
References: <3366@ccnysci.UUCP>
Reply-To: childers@avsd.UUCP (Richard Childers)
Organization: Metaprogrammers International
Lines: 79

GLOBALCP@UVVM.BITNET (Melcir Erksine-Richmond) writes:

>As we strive to globalize our  society, rapid communications (electronic and
>linguistic)  becomes an  essential  planetary facilitator for  focussing our
>efforts to determine  the most  desirable future goals.  Achievement of this
>objective  is currently  thwarted  by the  ongoing use  of  several thousand
>languages  around the world.

Agreed.

>... should compulsory  education  curricula, by the  year 2000, be taught
>in only the  world's major spoken  and written languages  (English, Mandarin,
>Hindi,  Russian, Spanish,  German, Japanese, French, Arabic, Hebrew, Swahili
>and Italian)?

No. I think that would impose an inappropriate burden upon the majority of
the world, which do _not_ speak any of those languages. It would be seen and
interpreted - correctly, I think - as cultural ethnocentrism, as well as a
poor example of the capacity for leadership on the part of world leaders, as
the example they would be setting would be, not one of communication at all
costs, but, rather, communication in the most concenient fashion ( relative
to those making the decision ).


>Ethnic continuity of language,  folklore, music,  costume, history and
>cultural  traditions, should rest in the  hands of  cultural  groups,
>as a social  rallying  focus.

Agreed. But let us discriminate between language for the purpose of cele-
-brating our cultural origins, and language for the purpose of synchronizing
our actions for the good of all. One exists for reasons of beauty and nature,
the other for reasons of efficiency and expediency. Perhaps those conflicting
requirements should be regarded as a mandate for separation of the two issues,
rather than allowing it to be used to fuel the flames of one or another of
the nationalist / linguistic champions.

Most cultural groups use one language for their cultural enrichment, but the
other, dominant tongue for administrative requirements. I would submit that
what we are searching for is a widely acceptable, potentially universal
administrative language.

>For discussion of global issues, a single lingua franca must be selected.

Agreed. I submit Esperanto as the only logical choice, as it is equally
strange to all, and thus allows nobody to gain an upper hand or occupy a
position of superiority without having earned it, independently of his or
her culture and language of origin. I think that is _very_ important.


>To achieve this inspiring trans-ethnic goal, we  must set  aside many of our
>treasured  but increasingly  anachronistic  traditions and  cultural assump-
>tions, including that of small socio-cultural groups being necessarily 'sig-
>nificant'.  While many ethnic minority groups are not only aesthetically and
>anthropologically 'beautiful', and live in  habitat-sustaining ways, in har-
>mony with their local eco-system  constraints, their colourful individuality
>still creates  obvious local problems - such as an inability to outgrow cus-
>toms  and  world-views  based on  assumption;  and lifestyles, languages and
>regional customs which are unviable in a global society; plus being restric-
>ted by those  group processes  which limit the social evolution of either or
>both the group and its individual members.

I think this is being taken care of by evolution, no need to force it. The
people who want to stay at home, should be allowed to stay at home. The ones
who want to travel and study and learn and evolve should have their chance.
Perhaps a planetary exchange program, not strictly related to scholastic
factors, driven by local needs ? Kind of a free-form Peace Corps ...

>GLOBAL PLAN  FOR SUSTAINABLE  HABITABILITY OF LIFE ON EARTH  WILL CREATE AN
>ENORMOUS GROWTH-SURGE OF NEW POST-INDUSTRIAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT:

Indeed. The trick is to get our parents and politicians to accept it.

-- richard

-- 
 *	A CITIZEN:   "Who might you be ? Samson ? --"                         *
 *	CYRANO:      "Precisely. Would you kindly lend me your jawbone ?"     *
 *                    from _Cyrano de Bergerac_, by Edmond Rostand            *
 *        ..{amdahl|decwrl|octopus|pyramid|ucbvax}!avsd.UUCP!childers         *