Everyone is always wondering about what the future holds. For some this could be graduation, buying a house, or having a child. However, what would happen if there were no more children? Although there are several conclusions that could be drawn, I think that this would overall be bad for both those who are currently living and the future of the planet.
If people have no reason to be concerned for the future, then resources would be depleted in an effort to raise the quality of life for those who are alive. This is illustrated in Derek Parfit's "Energy Policy and the Further Future" were he argues against worrying about consequences of our actions on future people. What then follows is that the planet would essentially be destroyed as people try to gain the maximum enjoyment knowing that they are the last generation.
This would likely lead to some form of lawlessness as well. Currently, the laws and morals of societies are usually in place to provide for a better future. However, as with the depletion of natural resources, people would no longer have a reason to worry about the consequences of their crimes. The organizations that strive to keep societies in order would likely stop as they would also be trying to gain the most out of life that they could. For this reason, those who are alive would also be worse off if there were to be no future.
Our thoughts and beliefs about what the future holds can keep societies in order. Most people act in ways that will try to improve the planet for the next generation. However, if this next generation no longer existed, chaos would ensue. It is apparent that if there were no future people, both the planet and those currently living would be worse off.
Hey Daniel! I agree with a lot of what you wrote in this post. I too hold the same viewpoint on how if we stopped caring for the future, the current generation and of ones to come would all suffer. I really liked your statement on crime rates and how that would be affected, as it was something I had never considered.
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