Star Trek or Alley Brawl?

David C. Stolinsky, MD
May 11, 2009

We just saw the latest “Star Trek” film, which reveals the early days of Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. We found the film entertaining, as are the other films of the series. But as I sat in the theater watching young men and women attending the Star Fleet Academy in the 23rd century, I could not help wondering if that was what the future of humanity would resemble.

Will we be joining with the other members of the human species, advancing science and exploring the unimaginably complex universe? Will we be exploring the planets and stars that our ancestors gazed at in wonder? Will we be fulfilling our destiny, which I believe is to come as close as we can − with our imperfect minds − to understanding God’s creation?

Or will we remain on Earth, our feet stuck in the mud, held back by our constant struggle against barbarians who want to take us all back to the Dark Ages? Will our resources of time, money, energy, inventiveness − and even blood − be expended in a never-ending alley brawl with thugs who know no rules? Will this struggle leave us so impoverished of resources and creativity that we will be unable to fulfill our destiny? Will we end up no better than our primitive ancestors, intermittently gazing at the stars we will never reach, while spending most of our time hitting one another over the head with clubs?

No one can see the future. But just now, the picture does not look promising.

Our resources are finite. The current economic decline leaves us no doubt of that fact. Not even the richest and most technologically advanced nation has enough resources to support all those who cannot or will not work, to carry the dead weight of all those who cannot or will not become educated enough to cope with technology, to care for an increasingly ageing population that has fewer children − while at the same time bearing all the human and financial costs of domestic crime and foreign terrorism.

Yes, I know that is a run-on sentence. But it is my way of emphasizing the additive nature of the problems we face. There is no way, short of some near-miraculous breakthrough in energy production, that anyone can afford to do all that, and still explore the universe. We first set foot on the Moon in 1969. We haven’t been back since 1972, even to fly around it. The last unmanned soft landing was in 1976. The space station is a rickety affair, the space shuttle is an outmoded and dangerous contraption, and no one can say when we will even begin the attempt to set foot on Mars.

Star trek? Forget about it. Mars trek is still not even in the planning stage.

If anything, the momentum of space exploration has slowed and virtually stopped. But you know what is even sadder? Very few even notice, much less care. In fact, what we have run short of is not just money, or resources, or time, or energy, or educated people. No, what we have really run short of is imagination, perhaps even spirit.

We are too busy making money, or stealing it, or keeping it away from those who would steal it. We are too busy listening to rap “music,” playing video games, visiting porno websites, and maintaining our own Facebook page. We are too busy turning ourselves into dependent children with the government as our nanny. People who want to be taken care of are not the type to explore the universe. They have neither the guts nor the imagination to embark on real adventures. The starship in the story was named “Enterprise,” a quality many of us now lack.

So where will future astronauts come from? The minority who have the drive to do something risky but meaningful can enlist and fight barbarians. Those who aspire to become aviators will fly combat-support missions in Iraq, Afghanistan, or wherever the thugs choose to strike next. These people will be performing necessary, even noble, actions − but at considerably lower altitudes than those where Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock operate.

And where will future space scientists come from? Those with a talent for math will become accountants and securities analysts. Those with a talent for science will be pushed by the government into working on windmills and solar panels, which at best can supply only a small fraction of our energy needs. The truly “green” energy source, nuclear, is condemned by the very environmentalists who should be promoting it.

Even the most obvious area where earthly practicality and space science intersect − building a defense against missiles − has been curtailed. Even the threat of fanatics firing missiles tipped with nuclear, biologic or chemical weapons is insufficient to raise us from our lethargy. There could be no clearer example of failure of imagination.

But space exploration? Who cares about that these days? The Soviet Union is no more, so there is no spur of competition between our astronauts and their cosmonauts. Without a military − or at least a nationalistic − motivation, space exploration is too far down the priority list to be noticed by all but a few diehards. And they risk being called “trekkies” and impractical dreamers.

No, as things stand now, I fear that star trek will remain in the realm of science fiction. Here on Earth, we are far too busy keeping what we have safe from thieves and con men. We are far too busy blocking the next blow from the thugs in the alley.

Watch out! That one’s got a broken bottle in his hand. Keep your eyes on him − don’t let them wander, and look up at the stars.

Here in the alley, that might be fatal.

But maybe, just maybe, if we stop punishing success and bailing out failure, and instead we reward success and let failure fail, we will generate enough wealth to live well and also get to Mars…and beyond.

And maybe, just maybe, if we beat the snot out of enough thugs, the rest will leave us alone, so we can pursue our destiny.

And then maybe, just maybe, we can rekindle our imagination and our spirit, and look up again at the stars.

Dr. Stolinsky writes on political and social issues. He can be contacted at dstol@prodigy.net.

www.stolinsky.com