The future is now

I see that if I wanted to explore space that there are ways that would allow that if I were creative enough. I would like to imagine a peaceful world where people lived in harmony but I think this is not a rational possibility. The universe is harsh and life itself can be harsh. It is wise to have a plan for defense, but it should not include suicide as a form of combat. The world seems to be coming to terms with it's very nature and nations must realize that their little patches of power are no match for what is to come. It is either death or coherence that are the choices and the tools of destruction are already present and the question is before the people. Will the world consume itself in secularity and nationalism or look to the stars and see that we are not alone and that what is there is most likely not friendly. Two nations with almost exactly similar genetic form and information and society can't keep from destroying each other, what are the odds that a race that is even 2% different will find us to be good neighbors?

I have for some time had a sneaking suspicion that some of the process on the Earth does not follow a natural progression of evolution without some external interference. I do not think that aliens are coming to the Earth to probe people and fly around in little tin cans. I think that the most logical method to achieve interstellar migration is the bootstrap approach. If the technology is solid enough it could be possible to send a probe to another star and simply send back a signal that it has X and Y. People can't travel first because the environment is too harsh. The simplistic exploration of Mars seems like a model that is incorrect. If you go to the expense of delivering a system that far away, you should use it as a means to establish a presence. In the forest, many plants will produce seeds and the interaction of their divergent methods leads to a complex system of life. Man may not own the universe, but life certainly does.