We're Witnessing the Fall of the Largest Empire in History.

Every empire in the history of civilization has fallen.

The Roman Empire, Mongol Empire, and Ottoman Empire.

In their day, each appeared unbeatable and unchangeable.

However, owing to disagreements and instability within themselves, they all collapsed, sometimes swiftly and brutally.

There is no cause for optimism that our current worldwide dominion will change in any way.

Whole societies have vanished.

The ancient Maya employed rigorous horticulture to surpass their resources.

They were wiped out owing to deforestation and soil depletion.

Similar outcomes have been attributed to Easter Island, where widespread cannibalism and hunger were brought on by deforestation and resource depletion.

When humans observe the "natural world," or the world we are familiar with, they often assume that this is the way things have always been.

Forests have always existed, as have deserts.

That isn't the case, though.

Consider Iceland (see below). It was formerly covered in trees before the Vikings demolished them all.

Likewise with the British Isles. The rolling hills and moors that encompass most of the UK are ecological dead zones because of the catastrophic deforestation.

The historical communities that once lived there transformed entire regions into deserts.

11,000 years ago, the Sahara was a lush green oasis. Rivers, lakes, grasslands, and woodlands covered the area.

Antelopes roamed the fertile fields. Crocodiles can be found swimming in rivers.

Perhaps because of slash-and-burn management techniques and overgrazing by domestic cattle and goats, this lush Eden was turned into the largest desert in the world.

Drought. Famine, war, and political strife.

Is anything about this beginning to seem familiar?

At its height, the Mongol Empire covered an area of 24 million square kilometers. However, it was not at all like what we currently have.

Historically, all empires and civilizations, no matter how large they were, had geographical boundaries.

Not so today.

We live in a global civilization, an empire that encompasses the entire earth.

Every area of the world is inextricably connected.

Europe and the United States rely on technology developed in China, which in turn is based on minerals extracted in Africa.

The world as a whole is affected by events that occur in one region.

Wars no longer threaten a particular empire, but rather the entire global community.

A nuclear war might destroy not only one civilization but the entire civilization.

Harmful PFAS from food packaging, nonstick cookware, chemical plants, manufacturing processes, and fabric softeners can be discovered in rainfall and snow on every continent at concentrations several times the recommended limit.

Even the most isolated areas are affected. PFAS has been identified in Tibet and Antarctica's freshly fallen snow.

You cannot go off-grid anyplace in the world and expect to gather rainwater that is free of these dangerous pollutants.

They are not limited to human beings. They have an impact on every level of the food chain, including the microbes that live in the soil where we grow our crops.

We can understand how the ancient Maya would have continued to follow the rituals that had evolved and nourished their society for thousands of years, even when it became clear that something was badly wrong.

We might assume they didn't realize the consequences of their farming or land management practices.

However, with our richness of scientific information, our civilization no longer has that excuse.

So, why are we continually rushing headlong into our own demise?

Decades-old research on social influence could provide some insight.

In 1951, the Asch Conformity Studies assessed groups of people who were presented with six simple lines of varying lengths and asked which was longer.

Everyone in the group was an actor, with the exception of the test subject.

The test subject was unaware of this. They believed the entire group was made up of random test subjects.

Each of the actors would provide a clearly inaccurate answer. For example, they would claim Line A was longer when it was clearly shorter.

Despite the group's obvious errors, an unusually high percentage of test takers provided answers that matched what their group said.

Group authority is an effective motivator. We are socially conditioned not to break ranks but rather to follow what everyone else is doing, even if we clearly see that it is wrong.

It may be a survival feature that promotes social cohesion, but it could also lead to our demise.

According to J. Krishnamurti, "Being well-adjusted in a very diseased society is not a measure of mental wellness."

Being able to adapt well to a society that is seriously ill is not a sign of mental health.

And if anything is clear by now, it is that the society in which we live is seriously ill.

I doubt the patient will survive unless we find a cure for that illness soon.

One thing is certain, however. The demise of the world's largest empire will undoubtedly be spectacular.

And, unless we're extremely lucky, those of us alive now may have a front-row seat.