Panorama: A Compilation of Situational, Acute, and Chronic Global Challenges

TRANSCEND MEMBERS, 4 Jul 2022

Anthony J. Marsella, Ph.D. – TRANSCEND Media Service

Limits of Human and Nature Life-Form Survival

“The straw that broke the camel’s back” … an undesirable event that makes it apparent a burdensome load can no longer be tolerated without collapse!

Introduction:

29 Jun 2022 – For decades, the straws of human struggle and suffering have been added to World’s back. Each adding to a burden exceeding limits of human and natural endurance and survival. Like thousands of others, I rejected the lies and propaganda of those in power seeking to mollify and calm the visibly apparent collapse of the World, as yet new straws were added for personal benefit of those individuals and nations whose wealth, power, and position enabled them to act with egregious disdain and contempt of the consequences of their actions – the “Extinction of Life on Earth.”

Like thousands of others across the World, empowered only by word and voice, I have written and prophesied like Cassandra, daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba of ancient Troy, sister of the noble hero Hector, gifted by Apollo with the powers to predict the future, yet ultimately denied acceptance of her words, regardless of their accuracy. And so, I write once again to call attention to the dire situation facing the world as its essential life resources are exploited, destroyed, and cast aside in favor corporate, military, and nationalistic profits, ideologies, and interests bent on the limited survival of a chosen few.

With little hesitancy, Secretary General, of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, spoke of a coming global crisis in starvation, an unprecedented global hunger crisis impacting hundreds of millions of people, most in developing nations, because needed resources for agriculture (e.g., seeds, fertilizers, arable land, energy, workers, harvesting and distribution systems) are currently unavailable. He called for a reintegration of Russia and the Ukraine into the food production network, tragically a most unlikely response.  (https://www.un.org/press/en/2022/sgsm21350.doc.htm) Global starvation, of course is only one of a spectrum of challenges, constituting a historic burden to the World. Yet another “straw” heaped upon a World mired in accumulating crises.

A Panorama of Global Challenges

I am writing this article on a panorama of global challenges with the specific purpose of increasing knowledge, consciousness, and urgent attention to the global context of our lives our lives today, especially with respect to their pressing severity, frequency, and resistance to solution.

What is at stake in this moment of time is the question of the “Survival of Life on Earth!” This is not hyperbole! I am not a Luddite! I am, like so many others, acutely aware of the perilous consequences of the many rapid, dislocating, and destructive changes occurring across the world today.

Life on Earth is experiencing a spectrum of challenges eluding control. Most of these challenges are a function of anthropogenic (human) origin, exacerbation, and perpetuation. When combined with the many natural challenges the World is facing, the spectrum of Global Challenges reveals the destruction of human and nature resources required for sustaining life.

Under the pretext of normal and acceptable progress and evolution in emerging technological advances, changes in the social formation, and essential Western nation cultural values, political priorities, and noble intentions, Global Challenges exceed our capacity to prevent the “Extinction of all Life on Earth,” from the most microscopic, to that of every vast expression.

Widespread pollution and destruction of ocean, atmosphere, and Earth, resources for financial purposes, has sealed the World’s fate. Anthropogenic failure to acknowledge Earth’s complex resources, raises the prophetic reality of “Eschatological” end times. Historical predictions, prophecies, and realities. (e.g., cyclical, linear, messianic), proposed across time and location in past centuries, are now visible and apparent.

Figure 1 displays the range of anthropogenic destruction of nature and civilization over the course of the presence of modern human species  in the last 50,000 years, especially the last eleven thousand years when humans moved from a hunting/gathering species to collective agricultural and societal forms of survival creating awe-inspiring civilizations which rose and collapsed from internal and external limitations.

While there is debate between environmental sciences, who favor the termed “Anthropogenic Era,” and geological sciences who  favoring more scientific terminology consistent with past practices (e.g., “Holocene”), it is no longer questioned humanity’s evolutionary rise from primate roots to tribal, societal, and civilization levels, brought with it a destructive impulse threatening to extinguish all forms of existing life.  Tragically, this harsh reality denies and erases the magnificence of humanity’s achievements in advancing noble knowledge, wisdom, and moral codes. There cannot be any doubt of humanity’s creative talents and abilities, yet these must be weighed against the consequences of Life’s demise and destruction.

Figure 1: Anthropogenic Destructions 

List of Global Challenges

In a previous article, I composed a list of Global Challenges, summarizing and categorizing well-know and self-evident problems accruing across present times. (i.e., Marsella, 2022). In my prior article, I was initially more concerned with the human mind’s pursuit of meaning by its capacity to accommodate disparate information, yielding acceptable beliefs and actions.

Unfortunately, lost in this process was the very list of Global Challenges I had compiled as a trope for my existential explorations. It was only after, I recognized I had stumbled across a far more important issue for our times, and that was the magnitude and consequences of the Global Challenges.

As a result, I began collecting, collating, and organizing global events and forces occurring within a condensed period of time to reveal the immense burden the challenges are imposing on individual, societal, and national survival. Each day seems to bring a new or augmented past challenge, and with a sense of uncertainty, confusion, and panic. It is too much to grasp and understand, bringing with it despair, chaos, and a helplessness the limits of human coping have been exceeded, and “end times” are near.

The compiled list of “Global Challenges, which follows is overwhelming in their scope and magnitude, raising to a new priority and call for action, the most important challenge humanity faces, “Extinction of Life on Earth.”

While daily attention is given to the many crises and disasters humanity faces, “Extinction” looms as the most critical. Within the last decade, there has been a dramatic increase in interest and publications about extinction, much of it stimulated by the publication of Elizabeth Kolbert’s (2014), Pulitzer Prize Award volume, The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History. Kolbert’s publication reminded the Humanity of the Earth’s past extinctions, their sources, and the many current disasters threatening a “Sixth Extinction.” Kolbert writes:

Over the last half a billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. This time around, the cataclysm is us. (Kolbert, 2014, opening).

Robert Burrows and Anita McKone (2016), in an essential article, entitled “Life on Earth Is Dying’” (Transcend Media Service, December 12, 2016), write:

The human onslaught to destroy life on Earth is unprecedented in Earth’s history. Planet Earth is now experiencing its sixth mass extinction event and Homo Sapiens is the cause. Moreover, this mass extinction event is accelerating and is so comprehensive in its impact that the piece meal measures being taken by the United Nations, international agencies and governments constitute a tokenism that is breathtaking in the extreme. You and I are on the brink of driving to extinction some of the most iconic species alive today. (Burrows, 2016)

James Lovelock, called one of the most brilliant minds of our time,  proposed a captivating hypothesis in two of his books: The Revenge of Gaia: Earth’s Climate Crisis & The Fate of Humanity Paperback – June 5, 2007 NY: Basic Books, Novacene: The Coming Age of Hyperintelligence (The MIT Press) Hardcover – August 27, 2019.  Lovelock suggested the Earth is a living planet, characterized by complex ecological interconnectedness in which all parts impact the whole, yielding an organic planetary existence.

Each day, there are “Challenges of the Day,” ranging from gun violence to romantic problems among banal celebrity lives. Too often, “Challenge of the Day,” has pushed other critical challenges aside. For example, Russia-Ukraine headlines, morph into economic issues of recession as consumer prices rise because of transportation, manufacturing problems, and supply lines. This is followed by the reality of mass starvation, especially in Africa and parts of Asia. This is followed by the perennial and enduring problem of violence, guns, and mass murders in the USA. The tragic Uvalde School massacre of 19 children and two teachers, became the focus of world attention, as nothing could bring comfort to shattered hearts and minds.

Within the span of a few weeks, my compiled List of Global Challenges had grown to Brobdingnagian proportion, characterized not only by number, but also by complexity and resistance to change. While many public and private (NGOs) have evidence admirable efforts to resolve entries, the harsh reality is people and the world are hurting. Amanda Gorman, USA Poet Laureate’ words, offer balm for our pain and suffering at this time when “everything hurts.”  Amanda’s moving poem is presented at the end of this article.

While there is a “Challenge of the Moment, occupying attention,” there is also an “accumulation burden” of Global Challenges constantly lurking in the background context.  This has critical implications for human stress and wellbeing, effective problem solving, and risks of extinction of all life on Earth. It is a harsh reality, but a reality nevertheless.

Of special note is the complex interaction and inter-relationship of the Global Challenges. Too many Global Challenges are dismissed “intentionally” by government, corporate, and military interests, keeping citizens in the “dark” about what is occurring, lest protests arise adding to the Challenges.

In many nations, protests now assume the form of national “populism” for governmental support, which is, in reality, denial, distortion, and a delusional reality. Humanity, through ignorance, greed, passivity, reliance, and acceptance, of unwarranted trust in corrupt public and private institutions, has forged its own demise, and the likely demise of other forms of life.

Because of their wealth, power, and position, some human elites may survive, by constructing alternatives to life on Earth. For example, elite corporate technocrats (e.g., World Economic Forum, Davos Cabal) believe a self-sufficient “Star-Wars” community in outer space will offer a solution for the privileged to survive. There are plans afoot to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon to support a human community. Their sins will follow them!

Global Challenges List: (Alphabetical Order)

• ABORTION RIGHTS(NATION VARIATION IN USE, ACCEPTABLE GESTATION           TIMES, MORALITY ISSUES, RIGHT-TO-LIFE, ROE VS WADE, SUPREME           COURT OVERTURN RESULTING IN MASSIVE PROTESTS)
• ACRONYMS OMNIPRESENT (USA, NATO, UN, FBI, MI5, MI6, CIA, KGB, WB,       IMF, NSA, SCOTUS, WEF, UK, IRS, SOCSEC, NGO, AA, DARPA, MAGA,           UDHR)
• AGING (AGEING) (WORLD POPULATIONS ARE AGEING PRESENTING NUMEROUS PROBLEMS REGARDING CARE AND COSTS. CULTURE           CHANGES HAVE RESULTED IN LESS FAMILY CARE GIVERS
• AIRLINE TRAVEL (STAFF SHORTAGES, PASSENGER ABUSES, FUEL POLLUTION, LOST LUGGAGE, SAFETY, CRASHES, STEWARD PAY, INEBRIATED PILOTS,           PILOT SHORTAGES AND STRIKES)
• ALCOHOLISM (ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE, ALCOCHOL ABUSE, ALCOHOL ADDICTION, BINGE DRINKING, FRATERNITY DEATHS, NIDA, FETAL           ALCOHOL SYNDROME, BEER POPULARITY AS SOCIAL LUBRICANTS,           ADVERTISMENTS, NON-ALCOHOLIC BEERS)
• AMERICAN INDIGENOUS POPULATIONS (AMERICAN INDIAN TRIBES, NATIVE HAWAIIAN, PACIFIC ISLANDERS, SOME HISPANIC NEW REPORT        OF MAJOR GENOCIDES, ABUSES, EXPLOITATION, BY USA GOVERNMENT,          RELIGION GROUPS (CATHOLIC, PROTESTANT, MISSIONARIES, ESPECIALLY IN IRELAND AND CANADA)
• ASTROPHYSICS (AWESOME DISCOVERIES & ACHIEVEMENTS IN THIS FIELD OF STUDY OPENED MINDS TO THE ORIGINS AND NATURE OF         EARTH, PLANETS, SOLAR SYSTEM, AND UNIVERSES.    RISKS/VIRTUES          (MINING METALS) OF ASTEROIDS BECAME MOMENTARY HEADLINES,       RISKS OF ASTEROID (BENTU), GOVERNMENTAL RESPONSES (E.G., SPACE          FORCE, NEW TELESCOPES)
• ATHLETIC PREOCCUPATION, ADDICTION, COMPETITION ACROSS DIFFERENT SPORTS (SOCCER, CRICKET, RUGBY, LACROSSE,   FOOTBALL,           BASKETBALL, BASEBALL,          TENNIS, GOLF, BADMINTON,           VOLLEYBALL, PING-PONG, BOWLING, OLYMPICS, PARA-OLYMPICS, TRACK           & FIELD MARATHONS)
• BABY-FORMULA SHORTAGES (USA MANUFACTURES SHORTAGES, INFECTIONS, SUPPLY LINES PRESIDENTIAL INTERVENTION,      DANGERS OF HOME PRODUCTS)
• CAPITALISM(PREDATORY, CORRUPT, EXPLOITIVE, CORPORATE,           PHILANTHROPIC, CORPORATION RIGHTS, CITIZENS-UNITED POLITICAL           DONATIONS, GREED, POWER.  WALL STREET INVESTMENTS EXPERIENCE           DECLINE IN TECH STOCKS.  INFLATION INCREASES, RISK OF GLOBAL           DEPRESSION)
• CELEBRITIES (PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION WITH POLITICIANS, ATHLETES, MOVIE STARS, SINGERS. CELEBRITY WITH LOYALTY TO SYSTEM TO           MAINTAIN THEIR STATUS; ISSUE OF PERSONAL IDENTITY)
• CHILD MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH (GROWING ATTENTION AND CONCERN FOR CHILD ABUSE, VIOLENCE, AND PERMANENT DISABILITIES,           ORPHANS FROM COVID DEATHS, HEPATITIS C DEATHS)
• CHINA(LEADING COMPETITOR TO USA MONOLITHIC STATUS. YEN           COMPETITOR FOR DOLLAR AS UNIT OF INTERNATIONAL CURRENCY.           ABUSES OF MUSLIM POPULATIONS. HONG KONG RESISTANCE, FUTURE           WAR WITH USA REGARDING TAIWAN AND ASIAN DOMINANCE,           REPRESSION OF TIANAMEN SQUARE)
• CIA CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY (INCREASING FACTUAL INFORMATION OF CIA INVOLVEMENT IN POLITICAL ELECTIONS IN USA,           REGIME CHANGE AROUND THE WORLD, INCLUDING UKRAINE,           FOMENTING WARS AND CIVIL STRIFE.  EVIDENCE OF INVOLVEMENT        IN TORTURE, ASSASSINATION OF INTERNATIONALS).
• CIVIL DISORDER, REBELLIONS, INSURRECTIONS, WARS (PALESTINE, ETHIOPIA, RUSSIA, AFGHANISTAN, SOMALIA, MYANMAR, HAITI,           COLOMBIA, PAKISTAN, SOUTH AFRICA)
• CLIMATE CHANGE DEADLINES (CO2, METHANE, GLOBAL IMPLICATIONS FOR EVERYTHING ESSENTIAL TO SURVIVAL, 50% CHANCE OF           MEETING WARMING DESTRUCTION MARK BY 2026. CONTINUED           INTERNATIONAL MEETS TO DISCUSS AND EVALUATE CARBON           DISCHARGE LEVELS )
• COLONIALISM(LAND, SEA, SKY OWNERSHIP) (E.G., BALKANS, TAIWAN,           AFRICA, RUSSIA-UKRAINE, ISRAEL-PALESTINE)
• COMMODIFICATION(ASSIGNING MONETARY AND FINANCIAL VALUE AND           COSTS TO ALL PRODUCTS AND PEOPLE)
• CONSUMERISM(BUY, BUY, BUY! ADVERTISING, TRANSFERRING, SELLING                SITE VISITS, ESSENCE OF ECONOMIES AT ALL LEVELS: LOCAL, NATIONAL,           INTERNATIONAL)
• CORPORATIONS (CITIZENS UNITED, EQUAL RIGHTS WITH INDIVIDUALS, OWNERSHP AND CONTROL OF TECHNOLOGIES, CORPORATION-          TECHNOLOGY PARTNERSHIPS – WEF/DAVOS)
• COVID (RECOGNITION OF ALTERNATIVE SOURCES, MUTATIONS, VARIANTS [OMICRON]). ISSUE OF DURATION [LONG, SHORT], SYMPTOMATOLOGY           DISPLAYS AND TESTS. UNCERTAINTY ABOUT FREQUENCY, SEVERITY,           TREATMENT, AND PREVENTION. AUTHORITIES DISTRUSTED?],           CONSPIRACIES, FINANCIAL PROFIT, LOCKDOWN CONSEQUENCES.           ESTIMATED 5 (15) MILLION DEATHS, SIDE EFFECTS OF VACCINATION)
• CRIME/VIOLENCE/CARTELS/SYNDICATES/GANGS/NATIONS (MEXICO, COLOMBIA, EL SALVADOR, USA, HAITI, ITALY, INTERNATIONAL           SOVEREIGN NATIONS, GOVERNMENTS, INTERPOL COOPERATION)
• CRYPTO CURRENCIES (BITCOIN, ETHER, LITECOIN, MONERO. INCREASING SCANDALS INVOLVING CELEBRITIES.)
• DIGITAL ID (MULTIPLE SOURCES OF DIGITIZING IPERSONL IDENTITY FOR RECORD PURPOSES.  SURVEILLANCE, MASS SOCIETY, CONTROL)
• DISEASE EPIDEMICS AND PANDEMICS (COVID VARIANTS, FLU, BIRD FLU FEVER, TUBERCULOSIS, OBESITY, DIABETES II, EBOLA, CHAGAS,           MALARIA, MONKEY POD, LYME DISEASE)
• DISPOSAL OF NUCLEAR WASTE (WHERE, HOW, CONSEQUENCES, OFTEN SHIPPED TO DEVELOPING NATIONS, ENERGY NEEDS FAVOR NUCLEAR           PLANTS)
• DISPROPORTIONATE MONOPOLISTIC CONTROL (BIG AG, BIG PHARM, BIG MEDIA, BIG ED, BIG FINANCE, BIG GOV, BIG BANKS, BIG PHILANTHROPIES)
• ECONOMY (GLOBAL RECESSION PRESENT OR PREDICTED. STAGFLATION WITH HIGH PRICES AND LOWER SALARIES. BILLIONAIRES INCREASE IN           NUMBER)
• EDUCATION AT ALL LEVELS(PURPOSES, PROCESS, PROBLEMS – BULLYING,           VIOLENCE, RACISM, DROPOUTS, CURRICULUM, TEACHER COMPETENCY,           MASS SHOOTINGS IN SCHOOLS IN USA)
• EXTINCTION OF LIFE FORMS (MICRO-MACRO) (ACUTE & CHRONIC, ENDURING, PERMANENT). (INSECTS, BEES, BUTTERFLIES, PLANT SEED           BANKS, TOXIC SPRAYS, HUMAN BEINGS, REGIONAL MINORITIES,           INDIGENOUS PEOPLES)
• EXTRA-TERRESTIALS(TIME TRAVEL, SOURCE, CONTROVERSY, CONSPIRACY,           SECRECY, EARLY PRESENCE IN ARCHEOLOGY, UFO, SKINWALKER RANCH)
• FINANCIAL PROBLEMS(SUPPLY CHAIN, IMBALANCE, INTEREST RATES,           INFLATION, RECESSION, STAGFLATION.  RISKS OF COLLAPSE OF USA           DOLLAR FOR WORLD TRADE [SWIFT]. FINANCIAL GIANTS: BLACK    ROCK,           ROTHCHILDS, CENTRAL BANKS CONTROL HUNDREDS OF TRILLIONS        OF WEALTH; HIDDEN OR SECRET FREOIGN ACCOUNT (PANAMA PAPERS)
• FOOD-INSUFFICIENCY (WEATHER, WAR, POLITICS, TRANSPORTATION, SUPPLY CHAIN, COSTS, CLIMATE CHANGE IMPLICATIONS)
• FOREIGN AID (SELF-SERVING AID GIVEN WITH CONTIGENCIES, INADEQUATE, BIASED, WEAPONIZED, REGIME         CHANGE)
• FOREVER CHEMICALS (PFAS, PERFLUOROOCTANOIC ACID (PFOA), A TYPE OF POLYFLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCE, OR PFAS – ALSO KNOWN AS           “FOREVER CHEMICALS.” PFOA, A HIGHLY TOXIC MANMADE CHEMICAL, IS           USED TO MAKE TEFLON)
• FRACTIONA TION OF POPULATIONS (ALONG RACIAL, GENDER, ETHNIC,           AGE, CULTURAL DIVISIONS, POLITICAL PARTIES. INEQUALITIES AND           BIASES, PERSECUTIONS,   INJUSTICES, HATREDS ABOUND)
• GERRYMANDERING (UNETHICAL & ILLEGAL POLITICAL VOTING BOUNDARIES BASED ON RACE, POLITICAL PARTIES)
• GREED (THOUSANDS OF SCAMS (CRIMES) TO MAKE MONEY. MONEY ACQUISTION BECOMES ARBITER OF BEHAVIORS. EXPLOITATION OF           WILLS, ESTATES, INSURANCE FRAUD, ONLINE DATING, CORPORATE           PRICE CONTROLS AND MONOPOLIES)
• GUNS(AVAILABILITY, DISTRIBUTION, USE, MASS MURDER, PARTISAN           POLITICS, SOME STATES PERMIT PEOPLE TO CARRY GUNS OPENLY IF           REGISTERED, PARTISAN POLITICS. INADEQUATE LEGISLATION           FOCUSING ON AGE LIMITS NOT GUN AVALABILITY)
• HOUSING &HOMELESSNESS (MILLIONS HOMELESS, LACKING PROTECTION           FROM ELEMENTS, REFUGEE CAMP INADEQUACIES, BLUE TENTS, RENTAL           PAYMENTS VERY HIGH, CORPORATIONS BUYING HOUSES FOR RENTAL           MONEY)
• HUMAN-RIGHTS(UDHR, CONSTITUTIONS RIGHTS, UNENFORCED.           WIDESPREAD GLOBAL-VIOLATIONS, REPRESSION)
• HYPOCRISY – HYPOCRACY (ACCUSATIONS OF OTHERS FOR DOING SAME USA IS PARTICULAR EXAMPLE OF ACCUSING OTHERS, INCLUDING           RUSSIA OF INVASIVE ACTIONS. HYPOCRACY/DEMOCRACY, MANY)
• IDEOLOGICAL COMPETITION, ANGER, HATRED, VIOLENCE,  (ANARCHISM, NEOLIBERALISM, RACISM, CAPITALISM, THEISM,                 CONSERVATIONISM, FEMINISM, AGEISM, PATRIOTISM, NATIONALISM,           REGIONALISM). CPAC [Conservative Political Action Conference in    Hungary led by Viktor Orban, Hungary Prime Minister, espouses         Far Right Populist ideology: God, Nation, Family.
• INCOME DISPARITIES (MEDIAN CEO PAY INCREASED 17% IN USA, WORKERS APPROXIMATELY 4%; EXCESSIVE DISPARITIES PROVOKING GOBAL           WORKER ANGER AMID RECESSION, FOOD COSTS)
• INSTITUTIONAL CORRUPTION(GOVERNMENT, MILITARY, CORPORATE,           RELIGIOUS, LEGAL, SCHOOL BOARDS)
• INSTITUTION FAILURES(UNITED NATIONS, NATO, IMF, WORLD BANK,           FOREIGN AID, MILITARY, CRIMINAL COURTS PROSECUTION, POLICE)
• INTERNATIONAL NUCLEAR WAR (AT PRESENT, SEVEN NATIONS KNOWN TO POSSESS NUCLEAR WEAPONRY (E.G., USA, RUSSIA, UK, FRANCE, INDIA,           CHINA, PAKISTAN, ISRAEL. MORE NATIONS SEEKING: NORTH KOREA)  
• INTERNET SEARCH ENGINE PROFILES MARKETING(PRIVATE, PUBLIC,           SECRET, PRIVATE EYES, ACCESS TO SCHOOLS, HOSPITALS, MILITARY)
• JUSTICE/INJUSTICE (GLOBALLY, LOCALLY, VISIBLE CORRUPTION, NEPOTISM, RACIAL AND ETHNO-CULTURAL MINORITIES)
• LIFE STRESS BURDEN (GLOBAL STRESS LEVELS ARE HIGH FROM WAR, POVERTY, SOCIAL CHANGE, GOVERNMENT OPPRESSION AND           FAILURE)
• LONGEVITY (STEM CELLS, CRISPR SEQUENCING, RNA, VACCINES, GENE THERAPY, TRANSPLANTS, PLASTIC SURGERY, CLONING, 3-D           REPRODUCTIONS)
• MASS SHOOTINGS(WORLDWIDE, NATIONWIDE, USA, LOCAL. BUFFALO, NY,   10 PEOPLE DEAD, UVALDE, TEXAS, 19 SCHOOL CHILDREN SHOT, PLUS 2           TWENTY MASS SHOOTINGS IN USA IN SINCE 2012 (E.G.           COLO,        ATLANTA, VIRGINIA BEACH, EL PASO TEXAS, PITTSBURGH PA,           PARKLAND        FL)
• MASS SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PROCESSES (GLOBALIZATION, DIGITIZATION, URBANIZATION, WESTERNIZATION, REGIME CHANGE,                 INSURRECTIONS, POPULATION GROWTH, DEMOGRAPHICS, AND           DISTRIBUTION, TECHNOCRACIES)
• MASS STARVATION (FOODS SUPPLIES ARE IMPACTED BY A COMPLEX ECOLOGY OF WAR, TRANSPORATION, FERTILIZER, POPULATION
• MEDICAL ADVANCES (NEW CELLS CAN HELP RESTORE LOST HEARING)
• MEDICAL AND HEALTH CARE(COSTS, AVAILABILITY, ACCESSIBILITY,           ACCEPTABILITY, ROBOTIC PROCEDURES, QUALITY, EFFECTIVENESS,           MEDICAL MALPRACTICE, FRAUD, PRIVATE, SOCIALIZED, GOVERNMENT           ALTERNATIVES, DOMINANCE BY CERTAIN ETHNOCULTURAL AND           NATIONAL GROUPS, RACISM IN TRAINING)
• MEMBERSHIP GROUPS (ORGANIZATIONS SERVING WEALTHY AND PRIVILEGED INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM           [WEF], DAVOS FACTION, WORLD BANK, INTERNATIONAL MONETARY           FUND, CENTRAL BANKING GROUPS, SECRET, QUASI-SECRET SOCIETIES,           BILDERBERG GROUP, BOHEMIAN GROVE, FREE-MASONRY,      KNIGHTS OF           MALTA, ROSICRUCIAN’S, ROYALTY)
• “MENTAL HEALTH” AND WELL-BEING (THE REALITY AND SYMBOLIC BURDEN OF GLOBAL CHALLENGES HAS GIVEN RISE TO MANY           INDIVIDUAL, SOCIETAL, AND NATIONAL PROBLEMS, DEMANDING             TRAGICALLY, INTERVENTIONS LOCATE THE PROBLEM IN           THE HUMAN      PSYCHE WITHOUT SERIOUSLY CHANGING EXTERNAL           CONDITIONS. THIS MAY DO LITTLE TO RESOLVE PRESSING CHALLENGES.           PROFESSIONALS MAY LACK EFFECTIVE PERSONAL, PROFESSIONAL, AND           TECHNICAL SKILL SETS, AND TREATMENT OPTIONS. EXCESSIVE           RELIANCE ON PILLS.  MANY MEDICAL DISORDERS (E.G., LYME DISEASE,           COVID, OBESITY, DIABETES I & II) HAVE SERIOUS MENTAL HEALTH           SEQUALAE).
• MILITARISM (MILITARIES ARE GROWING, SEEKING NEW WEAPONRY, TIES TO CORPORATIONS AND INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCES, USA HAS MORE          THAN 750 KNOWN BASES WORLD WIDE. AFRICOM EXPANDING IN        MILITARISM IS INCREASING ARMS TO VARIOUS NATIONS [E.G.          UKRAINE] WITH PERILOUS RISKS OF NUCLEAR WAR. POWERFUL      MILITARY CULTURES ACTING INDEPENDLY OF GOVERNMENT CONTROL)
• MOVEMENT LABELS & TERMS (GREAT RESET, BUILD BACK BETTER, FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION, NEW NORMAL, GREEN NEW DEAL, TECHNO-          STATE, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN-MAGA)
• MIGRATION, IMMIGRATION, ACCULTURATION, ASSIMILATION (LOCAL, NATIONAL, INTERNATIONAL, PLANETARY; MORE THAN FIFTY DIE IN SW           USA IN TRUCK SEEKING ENTRY INTO USA)
• MIND & BEHAVIOR CONTROL (MICROWAVES, LASERS, INTERNET, INSERTS, NATIONAL POLICY, GOVERNMENTS, PRIVATE CORPORATIONS,           MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE)
• NATIONAL DEBT ($30 TRILLION IN USA. EXCESSIVE USA NATIONAL EXPENDITURES ON MILITARY [$833 BILLION 2023] MORE THAN NEXT           NINE COUNTRIES.  OTHER NATIONS BANKRUPT UNDER CENTRAL BANKS’           STUDENT TUITION DEBT OUT OF CONTROL)
• NATO(NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION) (MILITARY FORCE           SUPPORTING USA FROEIGN POLICY. 30 MEMBER STATES, 28 IN EUROPE           AND 2 IN NORTH AMERICA, ISSUE OF NEED, FINANCIAL PAYMENTS,           INVASION OF RUSSIA, CHINA; SWEDEN TO JOIN NATO, AFTER YEARS OF           BEING A SILENT NATO STALWART; FINLAND IS JOINING NATO)
• NATURAL (NATURE) DISASTERS(INSECTS, EARTHQUAKES, TEMPERATURES,           TYPHOONS,       TORNADOES, FLOODS, TIDAL WAVES, VOLCANOES, FIRES)
• NURSE AND HEALTH CARE WORKER SHORTAGES(NUMBER, TRAINING,           COMPETENCIES, PLACEMENTS, ROLES. URGENT NEED OF LPN, RN, BSN,           MA, AND LICENSED MEDICAL ASSISTANTS.  HOME CARE PROFESSIONALS           NEEDED FOR ELDERLY)
• NUCLEAR WASTE DISPOSAL (BECAUSE OF HUNDREDS OF YEARS LIFE, NCULEAR WASTE DISPOSAL ON EARTH IS A SEVERE PROBLEM. USE OF           NUCLEAR PLANTS FOR ENERGY CONTINUE TO INCREASE AMOUNT AND           DANGER OF       NUCLEAR WASTE. DEPOSITS IN NON-WESTERN COUNTRIES           FOR PAY)
• OLIGARCHIES, PLUTOCRACIES, PARTISAN POLITICAL PARTIES, DICTATORS, BILLIONAIRES, FINANCIAL CORPORATIONS, MILITARY CONTROL, DAVOS FACTION, WORLD ECONOMIC     FORUM, USA MONOLITHIC & MONOPOLAR DOMINANCE           
• ORGANIZED CRIME(SYNDICATES, CARTELS, GANGS, DRUGS [E.G., COCAINE,           FENTANYL, PAIN PILLS, MARIJUANA]        PROSTITUTION, KIDNAPPING,           GAMBLING,       PORNOGRAPHY)
• PARTISAN POLITICAL PARTY POLITICS(EXTREMISM, BLOCKING VOTES,           THREATENING VOTERS, FILIBUSTER, VOTER IDENTIFICATION. DONAL           TRUMP CRIMNAL CASE BUILDING)
• PERSONALITIES(TOO NUMEROUS TO MENTION. SITUATIONAL. MEDIA           CREATES AND FLOOD THE WORLD WITH PERSONALITIES, INCLUDING           ONEROUS DETAILS OF THEIR LIVES, MAGAZINES, FAN CLUBS)
• PHILIPPINES (PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS “BONG BONG MARCOS,” SON OF FORMER DICTATOR FERDINAND MARCOS, ELECTED         VICE           PRESIDENT ELECTED IS DUTERTE, DAUGHER OF CURRENT PRESIDENT    OF PHILIPPINES UNDER INVETIGATION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS          VIOLATIONS. PROTESTOR WINS NOBEL PEACE PRIZE)
• PLASTICS(PRESENCE AND PENETRATION OF ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE.           INCREASING PATHOGENIC CONSEQUENCES; CANNOT AVOID USE AND           NOW IN ALL DRINKING WATER)
• POLLUTION(AIR, WATER, EARTH, ATMOSPHERE, SPACE, HOUSE, OFFICE)
• POPULATION GROWTH (7.5B – 9B 2040; MALI AFRICA WOMAN GIVES BIRTH TO NINE INFANTS; ONE YEAR LATER ALL NINE DOING WELL)
• POPULISM: GLOBAL & NATIONAL (RESENTMENT, RESISTANCE, REBELLION OF “ORDINARY” PEOPLE AGAINST ELITE IMPOSITIONS OF         VALUES, CONTROL, GOVERNMENT)
• POVERTY, MALNUTRITION, FOOD INSUFFICIENCY, FAMINE, STARVATION, DEATH (DEPRIVATIONS, KWASHIORKOR, PERMANENT           DISABILITY, COSTS, RESPONSIBILITY, MARASMUS, DEATH,           DEHUMANIZATION)
• PRIVACY/PRIVATE (VIOLATIONS AND ABUSES OF INDIVIDUAL, ORGANIZATION, NATION, REGIONS PRIVACY)
• PROPAGANDA(TRUTH, ACCURACY MANAGEMENT, SOURCE, METHODS)
• RACIAL, ETHNIC, CULTURAL, AGE, GENERATION, RELIGIOUS, GENDER, TRIBAL, DISABILITY, HOMELESS, VETERANS, DISCORD AND           PERSECUTION)
• REFUGEES & INTERNALLY-DISPLACED PEOPLE, ENVIRONMENTAL REFUGEES (NUMEROUS AND WIDESPREAD REFUGEE CAMPS. SOME           CAMPS HAVE EXISTED FOR TWENTY-FIVE YEARS {E.G., KENYA REFUGEE           CAMP FOR SOMALIS, ETHIOPIANS]
• REGIME CHANGE(USA HAS BEEN SOURCE OF SCORES OF REGIME CHANGES)
• RENEWAL TERMS(4TH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION, GREAT RESET, GREAT           NARRATIVE, GREAT TRANSFORMATION, DAVOS AGENDA, GREEN           REVOLUTION)
• ROBOTS (SMALLER THAN A FLEA ROBOT; REMOTELY CONTROLLED CRAB)
• RUSSIA/CHINA/EUROPE, USA, NATO ALLIANCES (STRIFE, RISK,           VIOLENCE, WEST-EAST, NORTH-SOUTH, BOTH POLAR REGIONS)
• SANCTIONS (SOURCES: GOVERNMENT, ORGANIZATIONS, MILITARY, NGOS, VARIATIONS, FOOD, MEDICAL SUPPLIES, HARSH CONSEQUENCES,           WEAPONIZATION,     MORALITY)
• SPACE-OUTER (COLONIZATION OF MOON, PLANETS, INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMERCIALIZATION, OWNERSHIP, WEAPONRY,           LASERS, SATELLITES)
• STATEHOOD FOR WASHINGTON, DC (CONSEQUENCES FOR VOTING RIGHTS, DEMOGRAPHICS, RACISM, PARTISAN CONTROL, COSTS
• STATE-TERRORISM(ISRAEL-PALESTINE, INDIA-PAKISTAN, USA       POLICY           PREFERENCES, MYANMAR-ROHINGYA, NORTH KOREA, CHINA VS ISLAMIC           GROUPS, NATO, SAUDI ARABIA VS YEMEN, RUSSIA-UKRAINE, USA-CUBA,           USA-VENEZUELA)
• SUBSTANCE ABUSE(ALCOHOLISM, BEER, PAINKILLER, FENTANYL, COCAINE,           HEROIN, ECSTASY, MARIJUANA, USA: 107,000 DEATHS IN 2021)
• SURVEILLANCE (GOVERNMENTS, POLICE & PRIVATE GROUPS GATHERING TOTAL INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, AND NATION INFO FOR STORAGE AND           RETRIEVAL, EYE SURVEILLANCE PROMOTED)
• TECHNOLOGIES(A.I., ROBOTICS, GENETIC INTERVENTION, INFORMATION           PROCESSING AMOUNTS, SPEEDS, STORAGE; WAR WEAPONRY, DARPA, 3D          PRINTING)
• TERRORISM (TYPES [E.G., INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, NATION], METHODS, LOCATIONS, TARGETS, DEFINITION, CONTROVERSY)
• TOILETS (LACK OF HYGENIC TOILETS, WOMEN AT RISK IN PUBLIC TOILETS, SPREAD OF GASTROINTESTINAL DISEASES, LACK OF TOILETS IN MANY           COUNTRIES)
• UFO (UNIDENTFIED FLYING OBJECT (MANY REPORTS OF UFO SIGHTINGS BY GOVERNMENT WORKERS, GOVERNMENT SUPPRESSES REPORTS FOR           NATIONAL SECURITY REASONS, USA AIR FORCE PROJECT BLUE BOOK,           USA AREA 52 ROSWELL NEW MEXICO, DISCLOSURES, CONSPIRACIES, ET,           DANGERS, SKINWALKER RANCH IN UTAH. USA CONGRESS HOLDS FIRST           HEARINGS ON UFO IN 50 YEARS))
• UKRAINE/RUSSIA RISKS OF NUCLEAR WAR AND WAR CRIMES (USA TO SEND 39.8 BILLION DOLLARS OR MORE  TO UKRAINE; ISSUE OF MAY         2, 2014 MASSACRE IN ODESSA BY UKRAINE, UKRAINE USA-INSTALLED       RIGHT WING “NEO-        NAZI GOVERMENT AFTER REGIME CHANGE, UKRAINE     BEOMES PROXY WAR BETWEEN USA AND RUSSIA, PROFOUND       IMPLICATIONS FOR STARVATION IN AFRICA WHICH IMPORTS MOST OF ITS GRAIN FROM BOTH NATIONS. RUSSIA COMMITTING INTERNATIONAL     WAR CRIMES)
• UNIONSLABOR & PROFESSIONAL (INCREASE IN UNION FORMATION AND           MEMBERSHIP, STRUGGLES WITHIN UNIONS OCCURRING, SOME           REJECTIONS OF UNIONS
• UNIVERSITIES: TENURE, FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, LIMITS TO TOPICS)
• URBANIZATION: (MAJOR CITIES IN USA ARE LOSING POPULATION [LOS ANGELES, CHICAGO, PHILA DELPHIA]. CITIES IN ARE GROWING IN   NEW NATIONS AS CITIZENS SEEK WORK)
• VETERANS MILITARY (PTSD, POOR CARE, HOMELESSNESS, SUICIDES, FAMILY VIOLENCE, FORGOTTEN)
• VILIFIED GROUPS PREJUDICES (TRANSGENDER, GAY, LBTGQ, MUSLIM, JEWS, PALESTINIANS)
• VIOLENCE (OMNIPRESENT AT ALL LEVELS, ISSUE OF INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, TYPES OF VIOLENCE; USA CULTURE OF VIOLENCE)
• WARS (LOCAL, CIVIL, INTERNATIONAL: PALESTINE-ISRAEL; INDIA-PAKISTAN; INDIA-CHINA, NATO/USA VS RUSSIA WITH UKRAINE AS PROXY SITE.           BILLIONS OF DOLLARS BEING SPENT ON WARS WHILE BILLIONS OF           PEOPLE LACK FOOD, MEDICAL CARE, HOUSING, TRANSPORATION,           STUDENT DEBT, NO GUN CONTROLS. SOME WRITERS CONCLUDE THERE           IS “NO WAY OUT!  IS THERE AN          ADDICTION TO WAR IN USA FOSTERED           BY WEAPONS MANUFACTURERS (LOCKHEED-MARTIN, RAYTHEON,           BOEING, GENERAL DYNAMICS, BAE, NORTHROP-GRUMMAN)
• WATER (LACK OF POTABLE WATER, REDUCTIONS IN USE FOR CALIFORNIA, STANDARDS FOR TOXCITY, LEAD AND MERCURY LEVELS, EAST-AFRICA           DROUGHTS [KENYA] KILLING PEOPLE)
• WEALTH DISPARITIES & DISTRIBUTION (1% VS 99%; .01% VS HUMANITY, MEGA BILLIONAIRES, MEGA FINANCIAL CORPORATIONS)
• WEALTH EXCESSES DISPLAYED AMID GLOBAL POVERTY (CANNES FILM FESTIVAL, OPENING OF NYC MET, TV AWARD SHOWS, OSCARS, ROYALTY          DISPLAYS AMID POVERTY)
• WORKPLACE STRESSES AND ISSUES (INCREASING NUMBER OF WORKPLACE DISSATISAFACTIONS REGARDING EMPOYEE OVERWORK, LOW SALARIES,           UNHEALTHY MILIEU, DISRESPECT, VIOLENCE (GUNS), UNION   BLOCKAGE, CUT-THROAT CULTURE).

Brief:

Here it is! A compilation of events and forces gathered in a brief time period from various information sources (i.e., alternative media, internet, reading, conversations, professional and academic listservs). The compilation is the reality of our time, and scores of writers have offered learned and opinion commentaries regarding the future of all Life on Earth. Please add any further. Human mind under overload.

References:

Marsella, A.J. (2022: May 9). A Panorama of Global Challenges: A Compilation of Situational, Acute, and Chronic Global Challenges: A Journey into Brain, Mind, Meaning, and Doubt.  Transcend Media Service (TMS).

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Anthony J. Marsella, Ph.D., a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment, is a past president of Psychologists for Social Responsibility, Emeritus Professor of psychology at the University of Hawaii’s Manoa Campus in Honolulu, Hawaii, and past director of the World Health Organization Psychiatric Research Center in Honolulu.  He is known internationally as a pioneer figure in the study of culture and psychopathology who challenged the ethnocentrism and racial biases of many assumptions, theories, and practices in psychology and psychiatry. In more recent years, he has been writing and lecturing on peace and social justice. He has published 21 books and more than 300 articles, tech reports, and popular commentaries. His TMS articles may be accessed HERE and he can be reached at marsella@hawaii.edu.

This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 4 Jul 2022.

Anticopyright: Editorials and articles originated on TMS may be freely reprinted, disseminated, translated and used as background material, provided an acknowledgement and link to the source, TMS: Panorama: A Compilation of Situational, Acute, and Chronic Global Challenges, is included. Thank you.

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