Let's say hoards of aliens landed on earth, and declared earth to be part of the Xenieythzh Empire. The aliens looked human - but were very thin and green - so they didn't really look like us.
All the governments of earth were overthrown, or turned into puppet governments, with leaders appointed from afar, or most often, an alien would be Governor General of a territory.
The aliens built huge sparkling palaces for their elite to live in, and for the aliens who came to live here. Humans were second class citizens, but many humans were promoted to serve the empire.
Any uprising against this was put down with weaponry far beyond our imagination.
Now - on the flip side. The aliens swept away the old cities, and built extremely advanced new cities, places where the alien and human inhabitants would be totally free from crime and not have to work anywhere near as much as at present.
All wars were wiped out, and any humans trying to start one were dealt with very swiftly. Crime became nearly non-existant.
The aliens could cure all disease, they looked after themselves, but shared the technology, and built health centres and hospitals, not as good as the alien only ones, but far far more advanced than our present ones.
Nearly all farmland was siezed, and sold to aliens, even more aliens claimed desert areas, and turned them into lush farms. These farms ensured that famine could never happen on earth again.
The aliens recognising the importance to many humans of religion, made laws protecting earth religions, and aliens were prohibited from entering churches and mosques.
New schools and universities were opened - all education became totally free, and as yet unanswered mysteries of the universe were at last shared by these aliens who were learned beyond present levels.
Now then, if this happened on earth - what would your thoughts be? Would freedom - the chance for humans who look like humans to be in charge...even though it meant a return to wars, famine, poverty and disease be most important, or would being a second class citizen be acceptable, in exchange for living in a crime free, hunger free world?
I was thinking of this question after debating last week on the goods and bads of the european empires. Granted the europeans shouldn't have been there, but it was a time when rule in africa didn't mean a murderous despot, when rule of law worked. In the end they wanted independance - and nearly all have descended into being a basketcase. Is freedom important over other things?
Nov 07, 2008 @ 19:24:14
