Oceans offer no solace in the digital age

There is a theory that our universe consists of nothing but energy and information.

This is rather startling, for our own eyes tell us that a plethora of things exist, from trees and puppy dogs to the Milky Way and Taylor Swift. But upon closer inspection, we see patterns everywhere. Taylor Swift is composed of human cells which are organized in a predictable fashion to form bones and muscle and nerves. Her brain is wired into patterns of neurons which enable her to create patterns of sounds with which to entertain us.

Patterns are created by information which imposes regularity, repeatability, predictability. Waves on the ocean, the facets of a diamond, and Taylor’s DNA are all examples of patterns, hinting at the hierarchical structures underneath. Energy, coalesced into matter, organized by patterns on top of patterns. An entire universe could conceivably be computed if one’s computer were only powerful enough.

Consider “Minions,” “Despicable Me,” and Warcraft – movies and video games representing entire worlds, entertaining and engrossing, but in fact existing only as strings of ones and zeroes arranged in clever patterns within a computer.

 Here are some other examples of information. The Constitution of the United States. The Ten Commandments. The Koran. Not just the paper and words, but the thoughts and beliefs represented by these documents – all information.

 We humans are respectable computers – information processors – in our own right. This has always been true, but what is new is the digital age. The ease with which ideas can flow, be shared, discussed, embraced or rejected is enormous. The digital age has really just begun, but it has already profoundly affected the ways in which we interact. Social memes ebb and flow across the internet, tweeted and posted and shared with the click of a button or a swipe of your phone.

This virtual world is becoming more and more real, and as more of us participate, with increasing facility and ease, physical borders and impediments dwindle to insignificance. Mountain ranges have long since ceased to be barriers. Rivers are instantly crossed by crackling electrons carrying our tweets through the ether. Oceans shrink, deserts are conquered. Information binds us, aligns us, encouraging alliances, creating schisms, and flows with the speed of light, imposing patterns upon mankind.

Such as the recent successes of ISIS. Nothing but a credo, a belief system, ISIS is reaching out to disaffected millions with their message of empowerment. Join us, and be strong. Support us, and be someone. Come to Western Asia and Africa and help us to build the caliphate. Stay at home and attack from within. Professional YouTube videos present targets and means and tactics. The draw is magnetic, the FBI is concerned.

The recent attack on our military in Chattanooga is an example. The perpetrator, a young male, was stirred to action, exactly how we will never know. But his actions are consistent with ISIS directives. We can expect more such attacks.

Attempts to minimize, to label this a “lone wolf” or “lone gunman,” to deny the link to terrorism, are blatantly political.

There is nothing at all “lone” about it. Mohammod Abdulazeez was one of an army of recruits, potentially millions strong, who are formed and trained and inspired every day by a sophisticated social media program. This threat must be recognized and confronted.

While the Administration and  Department of Defense dawdle, several states are moving rapidly. Florida, Indiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas and Wisconsin have all taken various steps to arm their National Guard members on base and in recruitment centers. More states are reviewing security measures and, one can hope, we will see additional measures adopted.

During the first battle for Fallujah, in the halcyon days when all the fighting was “over there,” a captioned photo of combat Marines was circulating around the internet bearing this legend: "America is not at war, the Marine Corps is at war. America is at the mall."

Those days are gone. ISIS is bringing it. We must recognize the threat and prepare to defend ourselves.

Like it or not, America is at war, and broad oceans offer little solace.

A long and winding road to marriage equality

Life, all life, obeys a fundamental tenet – the propagation of its genetic material. It is a mandate which shapes the behavior of amoebas and turtles and elephants and all of us.

This is often recognized as two subsidiary goals: survival of the individual and survival of the species.  Over and over again in nature we can see this in action as prey strives to escape predator and predator strives to devour prey – all in a constant battle to survive.  Heroic efforts to produce and feed and nurture offspring are observed in the labor of Emperor penguins and Canada geese and stockbrokers and soccer moms.  Life demands perpetuation and procreation.  It is embedded in our genes, imprinted on our DNA.  This monumental struggle can no more be denied than the urge to draw that next sweet breath of air.

According to Thomas Hobbes, the “life of man (is), solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”  An appropriate description of primitive life, for an aged Neanderthal likely died in his thirties. The survival rate of children was atrocious, with perhaps only one of three surviving past the age of six. Even in the Middle Ages, it was unusual to live past forty-five.  It is only in the last century that human lifespan regularly exceeded 70 years.   The discoveries of antibiotics and vaccines, fresh and waste water treatment, and the science of nutrition are largely responsible for this remarkable advance.

Throughout history, humankind has been preoccupied with the procreation of our species. Evolutionary pressures have established that, at least for humans, a family unit is the preferred method for maximizing both individual and species survival.  Where procreation was the goal, a combination of a pair of adult parents with the resultant offspring offered the greatest opportunity for individual and collective survival.

As humans evolved and looked with wonder upon their world, they invented theories and myths to explain what they saw, and to provide comfort. Native Americans created a Great Spirit, just as the ancient Greeks and Romans described a panoply of gods.

It should not be surprising that as religions developed, the strategies that enhanced individual and species survival were enshrined.  Marriage of man and woman became the basis of social organization, with the primary goal being perpetuation of the species via the survival of offspring.  As human populations grew, this strengthened society and, by rule of numbers, the predominant religions.

But by the modern age, things had changed enormously.  No longer was the day spent almost wholly focused on procuring today’s sustenance.  The survival rate of children is now measured in the high 99^th percentile, a far cry from the disastrous effects of predation and influenza and dysentery of prior ages.  A complex society has evolved to overproduce food, shelter, and clothing to the extent that delivers an almost embarrassing surplus.

Our political and religious structures have continued to recognize the value of the familial unit that contributed mightily to our attainment of this nirvana.  But things have, indeed, changed.  Survival of the individual, while still threatened by carjackers and heart disease and other unpleasant things, is largely guaranteed by our booming economies and generous social programs.  Procreation of the species can be achieved via traditional methods or by a number of sophisticated fertility techniques.  Almost any couple can now bear children, and those who cannot may adopt. The strict imperative of male/female bonding for species propagation has been relaxed by a combination of factors.

The original purpose of marriage, between a man and a woman, has long been fulfilled.  We have survived, we have bloomed, and matured. Religious constraints, created during times of disease and duress, are now free to evolve.

The Supreme Court is correct. There is no longer a justification for denying like-gendered couples the societal benefits of marriage. It does no harm to our specie’s survival and adds to the store of human happiness.

That’s an easy case to argue.