MARCH 22, 2028
THE TWIG
PAGE 3
World Ordgr
Development conference examines progress
NOTE: Cindy Truelove at
tended the Fifth Decade of
Development Conference
jointly coordinated by the
United Nations Trade and
Development Conference and
the IBM Foundation for
Global Equality. Reporting on
the landmark meeting held in
Accra, Ghana, M. Truelove
shared the following text of
the key note address by
recently elected Secretary-
General Juanita Burgos de
Letelier of Peru.
“Gathering today to
examine the progress of five
decades of global planning, we
bring with us a spuratic zeal
first expressed by planners in
1964 who challenged the
economic injustice of a
misguided world system.
Though planners motivated
member nations of the United
Nations to eradicate gross
economic inequalities in a
world where the wealthiest 35
percent consumed 78 percent
of the total world resources,
the first three decades of
modernization minimally
improved the quality of life for
the majority. We, in 2028,
must recognize the im
portance of the year 1985 in
the economic history of planet
Earth. Each of you can
perhaps recall the feeling of
dispair as February of 1985
found the crowded country of
Bangladesh virtually
ban^pt. Countless
thousands faced unem
ployment as the jute
processing plants prepared to
cease operations. Plagued by
constantly fluctuating prices
on the world market as well as
an increasing debt from
numerous international loans,
the bankruptcy of the world’s
chief producer of jute because
the impetus for the Common
Fund instituted in 1990.
Since 1990 the Common
Fund has provided a sub
stantial and constant market
for all of the world’s primary
product producers. Countries
producing chromium, jute,
coffee, cocoa, and tea are no
longer subject to unstable
markets for their major
products. As the Common
Fund has functioned to insure
market stability, the primary
producers no longer suffering
major debts to the wealthier
nations. As insured importers
of the world’s goods, the
primary producers now
function to maintain a world
free of tariffs and quotas
which once plagued the world
system. Gaining financial
stability through the Common
Fund for primary products,
the primary producers now
comprise the world’s market
for semi-finished industrial
products-a phenomenon of
the last twenty years. The
antiquated General System of
Preferences which gave
special privileges to nations
with developing economies
has been discontinued in
exchange for a world with no
trade barriers and a conscious
effort on the part of wealthier
nations to import the semi
finished materials from their
counterparts in the Common
Fund.
We cannot overlook the
important contribution of past
Secretary-General Jerry
Brown of the United States in
committing the “wealthy 10”
to the full allocation of 5
percent of their Gross
National Products to the UN.
Indeed, this increase
represents a far-reaching
commitment by the United
States and other nations to
global equality. Though Mr.
Henry Kissenger, former
Secretary of State for the
United States, committed his
country to eradicating the
economic imbalances as early
as 1976 at the Kenya Con
ference on Development, it
was not until Secretary
Brown’s administration in the
State Department that the
major investment funds was
realized.
Numerous tools are now
available to measure the
actual level of the quality of
life on our globe which could
only be projected by the Gross
National Products of former
times. The code regulating the
transnational corporations
instituted in 1980 has tran
slated profit extraction and
capital intensive production
into profit sharing and ap
propriate technology which
best utilizes the potential of
heavily populated areas. As
the quality of life has vastly
improved with the reorien
tation of transnational cor
porations to just operation,
our urban areas have become
centers of human creativity
world-wide.
Each of us today is
challenged to develop a sense
of history as we prepare to
design a Fifth decade of
Development. A philosopher
of the mid-20th century ob
served that “civilized
humankind marched across
the face of the Earth and left a
desert in its footprints.” We
must continue to create
productive and plentiful
islands in the midst of the
desert in order for human
equality and potential to be
realized.
Business and Economies
Society projected as eashlesSf computerized
When one of Meredith’s
roving reporters, Frances
Wooten, went around campus,
back in 1978, asking in
dividuals what they thought
the business world would be
like in 2028, she came up with
some rather interesting
replies!
Scholar Amy Davis stated
that there would be a
“cashless society” and
everyone would be using
credit cards.
A classmate, Mary
Bowden, agreed and men
tioned that the dollar would be
“non-existent.”
Another student, Nancy
Caison, added that “cash will
be out of style.”
Barbara Sirles stated that
the students would more than
likely be taught by computers
and that computer
programming would be taught
in the schools at all levels.
As for inventions, Kaki
Mauney suggested that there
would probably be telephonic
screening where people could
call one another and see each
other while talking on the
phone.
Cindy Edwards felt that
more emphasis would be
placed on the stock market
and that a new business field
would be created by 2028.
Reporter Wooten also
consulted the professors and
instructors in the Department
of Business and Economics
about their intuition con
cerning the business world of
2028.
Dr. Lois Frazier, chair
person of the Department of
Business and Economics,
stated that “basically the
same courses would be taught
in 2028, but the students will be
expected to synthesize ideas
toey have acquired from a
variety of sources. The em
phasis will be on trends,
relationships, and ap
plications.”
Dr. Ivory Lyons believed
that there would be courses on
“Welfare Economics,”
“Universal Economics,”
“The Social Product,” and
“The Gross Universal
Product.”
Dr. Alden Peterson, the
management professor,
believed that there would be
such courses as “Organization
of Intergalactic Cor
porations,” and “The
Management of Humanoids.”
He expected to be instructing
his students in how to use a
cranial wave assimilator-
dissimilator.
Instructor Charles Nelms
suggested that there would be
special courses and seminars
on “telepathic and telemetric'
communication.”
Mrs. Evelyn Simmons
said that she will program her
lectures into a robot. It will
not be necessary for students
to come to class to receive the
lecture material. There will
be computers in the students’
rooms. They will store the
lectures for future playback
and studying. Students will
hook up with computer
assisted teaching machines to
answer their questions. No
texts will be necessary. All of
the material will be contained
in the computer retrieval
system.
Dr. Lyons mentioned that
his primary teaching
equipment tool will be the
satellite. Dr. Frazier added
that “machines will be used to
reduce some of the recording,
calculating, and other similar
tasks.”
Instructor Marjorie
Hansen stated that “there will
be more instruction with
computers and other ad
vanced machines.” She went
on to say “the cyclopean eye
plus meticulous memory will
be installed in all places of
business to read the Universal
Product Code on all products,
goods and services alike.”
Instructor Nancy Sasnett
stated “Our energy source
will be different; machines
will be powered by solar
energy, water, rechargeable
batteries, or computers.”
Mrs. Simmons feels that
there will no longer be a
parking problem. People will
be propelled by their Buck
Rogers Belts.
Mr. Nelms stated that
“the labor force will not
require everyone to work.
Therefore, we will need
special courses instructing
people how to handle their
leisure time.” He went on to
say “Those who do work will
be more productive and ef
ficient wito the aid of more
advanced machinery.”
Mrs. Hansen feels that
“the tax system will be totally
revamped - perhaps per
formed automatically at the
point of purchase. Taxes will
be higher, deducted im
mediately, and calculated hy
computers that remove all
loopholes.”
Dr. Frazier summed up
the future in a most objective,
realistic manner:
“The business world of
2028 will demand competent
employees, enlightened
employers, streamlined
procedures, efficiency in
operation, development of
sophisticated machines, and
transfer of menial tasks to
machines.”
“A great deal of emphasis
will be placed on the ethical
and social responsibility of
business, the number of
service-oriented businesses
will increase. The people
seeking careers in business
will need a thorough basic
education, knowledge of.
business principles, un^:
derstanding of the role of*
business in society, a;
willingness to work and:
adaptability to change, which:
is constant!”
How much of this applies'
lo the business world of 2028?,