Orion Digest №1 — An Introduction to The Future

It has come to my attention in the last year that the world has reached a tipping point. We have seen many tumultuous periods of human history before, periods in which the fate of all the future seemed to hang on our decisions, and as we are still alive and partially free, I’d like to think we made the right ones. But while our world becomes more and more enlightened with the passage of time, a fact I take great joy in, the world also becomes more and more dangerous. Those that would stand for progress are opposed by systems of tyranny and oppression, and blindness at the captain’s wheel leaves our lone ship in the vast ocean of the cosmos careening towards rough waters.

This past year specifically has shown many of us the fact of the matter, which is that we cannot write off the affairs of the human world as “business as usual” any longer. Things are changing, and a pandemic may be the first waves of a series of changes that the world will be rocked by. To say that ‘the end is coming’ would be counter-productive; the world will go on spinning as it always has in a hundred years. But it would be just as foolish to deny that ‘changes are coming’, or perhaps a more accurate revision to the above, ‘an end is coming.’ I believe that as we discover more about ourselves as a species, we are transitioning into a new, and hopefully bright, era of human history.

But enough about the ominous, eh? I’d like to get down to business, to roll up my sleeves and write a series of precursor documents to the era to come, or a series of essays explaining the path forward. I would hope that the world would naturally tend in the direction most benefitting humanity, and that I could kick back and relax, assured that things would be alright, but history and reason tell me that will not be the case. The world will not get better unless action is taken, not by those who have stepped up first and hold the line whenever the world is at risk, but by even those who sit comfortably and assume themselves safe, assuming the problems to already be solved. No, to build a world where we all benefit, we all must contribute in our own way. There has never been a situation more befitting of the term ‘all hands on deck.’

So, I intend to write in such a frequency and passion as to stir the hearts of others to our cause, to ride through the streets and rally the cause of the world. I offer the gift of information freely and request support in exchange, and it is my sincere hope that others will join the trail, riding with me into the future.

The first manner of business is that of unity. Throughout human history, we have expanded all throughout the world, adapting to new and perplexing landscapes and developing cultures, languages, beliefs all of our own. Inevitably, when long separated tribes would at last encounter each other, they would be confused at what they saw and fight against each other, creating deep wounds that still leave scars on the faces of nations today. Resentment runs high from wars old and new, and these lines that have been drawn between nations keep us from seeing the underlying humanity that connects us all, the one nation of Earth that we all are citizens of underneath.

In a world going forward, we must make decisions that concern all of us together, for no one nation that does not consider all people its citizens can speak for the world as a whole. Our day and age stands in the midst of several issues that are a matter of the lives of every citizen, and thus what we have in common is much more important now than what divides us. I have met many who share these sympathies, concerned about how a divided world could cause continuous infighting within a global family.

The second matter, concurrent with the first, is the matter of making sure that when nations unite, it is not under the banner of tyranny, but of equality and freedom. Humanity has never truly flourished when it is caged; together we are only as free as our most oppressed citizens, which means that we must work to protect all from injustice and discrimination. We cannot change the past, but we can learn from it, and learning how to respect our fellow humans regardless of their identity is a necessary foundation for a strong future.

When I speak of the chains of tyranny, I acknowledge that there are many links of many different types in that chain. Tyranny sometimes show its face in the corruptive influences that plague governments. It sometimes makes itself known in the intolerance of citizens, conditioned in that age old lie that all who are born cannot coexist on the same world. It can be systems of greed that leave some in high towers and luxury and others begging on the streets. To move forward, we must set things right by destroying these chains, by seeing through the undoing of tyranny and the encouragement of freedom and justice.

These are the obstacles that prevent us from laying down the foundation of the future, the various debris from past conflict and hatred that lay in our path and hinder our journey to prosperity. They may seem too insurmountable and ingrained to ever get past, but I ask you, was it not humanity that mapped the great wide world? Was it not humanity that made steel move and electricity sing? Was it not humanity that found peace on battlefields and brought kindness in the darkest of times? Was it not humanity that broke the Earthly tether of gravity and journeyed to another celestial body?

To return to my original point, I am confident that given time, we will overcome the dangerous times Earth faces, and I think in this new era of human history, we will walk forward truly together, understanding what makes us different but with bonds made strong by what we have in common. That does not mean I am not prepared to fight, letter by letter, protest by protest, brick by brick for the planet and people I hold so dear. So, with the foundation of this first essay, I introduce you, reader, to the Orion Digest, a series of essays I and any who join my cause will produce until this end is met.

I will start with the first two subjects of my study, dissecting what it means to have a world united and who has been fighting for it throughout history, as well as what intrepid supporters can do to accomplish said goal. The next issues of the Orion Digest will not have a set order, but will discuss at length the general concepts and philosophy of world federalism to provide a grounds for later discussions of how to achieve such a goal. I wish these essays to provide both a description of the Sword of Orion’s cause, as well as an informative series with a slant towards beneficial human progress.

Until I delve into these topics, I would recommend looking into the UNPA Campaign, as well as wonderful organizations such as the Young World Federalists, Democracy Without Borders, the World Federalist Movement, and so on. Certainly an inspiration to me, they have pioneered the fight for a world brought together.

- DKTC FL