The Meaning of Colloquium Post #17

Colloquium means many different things to different people.  The course serves as a warning; a warning of the not too certain future where the main concern is sustainability of our current status.  Best case scenario is we’re faced with being knocked down a notch or two from our current elevated life style.  Worst case scenario is a future similar to Mad Max where we kill each other for bullets, fuel, food, and water.  Of course I took the warning seriously but I have for a long time suspected that our current society couldn’t survive forever.  What surprised me was that most of the class chose to snicker, sneer, and ignore the educational warning offered to them. Many others believed that the content was ridiculous and did not pertain to their lives. I didn’t understand why so many had such narrow perception of the world around them.  Maybe because my classmates are still so young and still have no sense of mortality.  Most of them never had to fend for themselves, had to make sure that all the bills are paid with enough left over for food, or the sense of responsibility that one has with children and spouses.   I know bad things happen to good people, even in the best of times and that most of us, in a financial sense, are extremely fragile.   I know that even if Mad Max is only a flight of fantasy of an over pessimistic prediction of the future, the best case scenario still means increased strive and suffering for my children and for the generations to come.  There is sadness in the thought that my childrens choices and opportunities will be less than my own.   So does that mean that I find a bunker and prepare for the collapse of the world?  I doubt it.  I do take the threat seriously but I still have my reservations of what will actually happen and to what extent.  I know one thing, that  people with higher education, better resources, and that are most adaptable will be the ones that fair the best no matter what scenario presents itself.  The warning hastens me to push to improve myself and to improve my current position and right now the best plan is education.  Education will afford me better opportunities, better leverage, and will give me more knowledge in society if there is collapse or not.   How does Colloquium apply to my major?  I’m not too sure.  I know that much of the knowledge I attained in class will definitely have some impact on the decisions I make in my education, and for the motivations of seeking higher education. I also would assume that I would both seek personally and professionally to reduce my energy conception and ways to reduce waste, which I have done for a while now.  Colloquium’s message is not one of doomsday but a warning; a warning meant to educate and to promote the change that is so needed.  I think that the subject matter is vital and should be taught at all levels of education.