Collective Power

Resistance is Futile; this popular expression is from the sci-fi show Star Trek. The phrase is usually used moments before the Borg species attacks, annihilates, and/or assimilates their unwilling foes into the Borg Collective. The Borg Collective is the most powerful mixture of races in the known Star Trek universe. Even though this is merely a scientific fantasy, it shows principals that are very true in the real world. Everything working as a Collective, whether it is the Borg or an assortment of bees, finishes tasks faster, more efficiently, and produces a higher yield than any one individual.

Organizations around the world are hailed for how efficient they are, and many ask: how do they do it? I believe that a man, hundreds of years ago, answered this question when he said, “United we Stand, Divided we Fall.” I contest that he was on to something that could apply to his day, and to the millennia to come. What he was simply stating was, “As a group, a union, an organization: a collective, we realize what others will not, we oppose what others dare not, and we rise where others can not.”

One powerful example of the rise and fall of a collective is the Ancient Egyptian Empire. As an Empire, the Egyptians were hailed for much. They raised a civilization out of the vast deserts of Africa, created the last standing of the Seven Wonders of the World, and exercised control over peoples that were later documented to be an "unstoppable force". This Empire, at the height of its power, was a fully fledged collective, made up of Monarchs, Priests, Scientists, and, to borrow a term from Star Trek, drones. Their wealth was insurmountable, and their knowledge and armies were vast. How then, did they seal their fate? One could easily argue that Pharaoh “Let his people go.” He broke the collective ties that had held his empire together. A civilization that stood as a beacon for generations was demised to nothing without its work force. Egypt once stood united, but as a divided, weakened group they sure came to the sands of the desert.

We as a civilization now need to look at ourselves and compare what we have become to the ancient worlds and the scientific spheres. We do not stand truly united; we have lost the direction that is necessary for a nation, a collective, to walk forward achieving all. We would not have to fear if our goals were concise, accurate, and reflected our values. We bicker and fight within our own states, which leads to states combating states in the Senate. If we truly wish to make a difference in this world, we should position ourselves as a collective. As we achieve this, we will be able to say confidently to ourselves and to those opposing us: Resistance is Futile.

Running Demon