...years ago an experiment was started; this is what happened...
Some years ago it was decided to try a social experiment - with the only participants being people either on Death Row or serving Full Life Terms in Prison.
The Prisoners were be put on an Island in the Pacific, without any direct supervision and allowed to essentially fend for and organise themselves; and no it's not Australia...
It was thought that because people had no choice and no option of escape (everyone would live and die on the Island), they would form communities of self supporting sustainable groups.
They were simply given Two Rules to live by;
1. Be Nice
2. Look after the Island
Here is what happened...
1. Segregation - the colony became segregated on ethnic and religious lines. Not only were divisions noted in the Abrahamic traditions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam but also with regard to Indian and East Asian philosophies too.
There was no evidence for the validity of any of these religions on the island, the ideologies were brought with the inmates and transferred to others through indoctrination and persecution.
Furthermore, divisions within the religious groups were extended to include distinctions based upon ethnic background and nationality. The more freedom they had, the more territorial and increasingly fundamentalist in their doctrine they became.
2. Power - weapons were produced by a collective of the Gangs from the Christian and Jewish groups. They used these weapons, and the threat of attack to control the actions, thoughts and resources of the other groups.
If other Gangs attempted to get weapons, they were attacked and destroyed.
Drugs and prostitution were rife and numbers of Gangs operating outside the traditional groups were formed to control these activities - the biggest customers of the Gangs were the other Gang members.
3. Resources - the natural resources were owned by a small elite Gang at the top of the hierarchy. Ownership of the land and the resources that lay beneath it was taken by the Gang with controls regarding the distribution and supply of the resources to others on the island.
The resources were not replenished or used in a sustainable way, and although it was recognised that no alternatives were available, in the name of greed and ownership, all resources would be expended in the future.
4. Growth - the population grew exponentially. It was a mixed colony and although it was thought that the population would be controlled by the collective, and be dependant upon the available resources of land, food and fuel; in fact the numbers doubled in just 40 years.
The colony made up it's own rules, laws and codes - anyone who didn't comply with these rules were excluded from the group and had sanctions and penalties applied to them. The structure was a loose form of democracy, however, using the system to change the system itself proved impossible for the vast majority.
5. Statistics.
- 0.13% of the inmates controlled 25% of the assets of the Colony.
- 18% of the inmates went hungry.
- 20% of the inmates were living in Poverty.
- 30% of inmates had no access to clean water.
- 32% of the population were illiterate.
- The poorest 40% of the inmates earned just 5% of the "income" whilst the top 20% of inmates earned 75% of the "income".
- 50% of the children born lived in poverty within the Prison.
- 5% of the inmates owned assets worth more than the other 90% combined.
- 100% of all assets were owned by the Gangs, and through this control and influence on the population, created "police" to enforce the will of the Gangs on the rest of the inmates, and protect the population from threats by other groups.
Extortion or "taxes" were imposed by the Gangs on the other inmates in exchange for protection, all income and assets was controlled by the Gangs.
The experiment was considered a failure - the death rate in the Prison was higher than in the outside population and it was feared that at some point, they may escape the island and threaten the rest of civilisation.
If you were the Governor of this Prison Facility - what would you do..?
So where is this Colony...?
Simple - we call it Earth and these statistics are real and genuine...
Welcome Home...
