We see often Malthusian descendants saying that THIS TIME, for real, we are on an unsustainable path, despite some two centuries of being wrong. I drove through Pennsylvania and New York two weeks ago, and I saw mile after mile of prime land, that could be used to grow food, or whose trees could be harvested for any number of things. Canada consists almost entirely arable land, particularly if we can get the Earth warmer.
Obviously, at some point, we really will reach the limits of what is possible, at which point prices will indicate we need to change our consumption patterns. We are nowhere close to that point, however.
We see, though, the desire to want the good things in life called “selfish”. I would submit that that is the wrong word entirely. What it is is a materialistically oriented meaning system, one which seeks to maximize sensory pleasure with concrete things, whether they be fine wines, gourmet food, or beautiful women. It seeks happiness, in other words, through consumption of physical things.
What is needed is a happiness dependent on the “consumption” of non-ordinary states–or perhaps the routinization of such states, making them “ordinary”–those of mystical connection, deep relaxation, and the warmth of loving and feeling loved. These are infinite.
To move toward this, we must first posit that personal growth is possible, and that there are thus necessarily qualitative difference between people. Some people are better than others, they are more advanced. Nobility can be earned. This basic idea has no place in materialistic Socialism, which finds all value solely in material equality.
Socialism is not our future. It is not a blessed doctrine. It does not have the divine in it. It does not have the sanction of morally advanced people, and it does not help people, finally, in living more fulfilling lives. Yes, it can build comfort in some forms, but one that will break in the face of every determined challenge. Sweden and Denmark and Norway may well be Shariah compliant nations 30 years from now, barring other catastrophe. As I stated in my essay on politics, there is nothing intrinsically wrong with Sybaritic Leftism, other than that it makes people soft, and unable to defend themselves from people who have not rejected the values of sacrificial culture.
Hopefully that makes sense. This is a bit scattered.