tw359

 On page 359 at top it says,

     "What we cannot find is "the" cause of the Third Wave in the sense of a single independent variable or link that pulls the chain. Indeed, to ask what "the" cause is may be the wrong way of phrasing the question or even the wrong question altogether. "What is the cause of the Third Wave?" may be a Second Wave question.
     To say this is not to discount causation but to recognize its complexity. Nor does it suggest historical inevitability. Second Wave civilization may be shattered and unworkable, but that does not mean that the Third Wave civilization pictured here must necessarily take form. Any number of forces could radically change the outlook. War, econimic collapse, ecological catastrophe come immediately to mind. While no one can stop the latest historical wave of change, necessity and chance are both at work. This, however, does not mean we cannot influence its course. If what I have said about positive feedback is correct, ofen a little "kick" to the system can bring about large-scale changes(I'm gonna kick the shit out of the system, hehe).
     The decisions we take today, as individuals, groups, over governments, can deflect, divert, or channel the racing currents of change. Each people will react differently to the challenges posed by the super-struggle that pits advocates of the Second Wave against those of the Third. Russians will respond one way, Americans another, Japanese, Germans, French, or Norwegians in still other ways, and countries are likely to grow more different from one another rather than more alike.
     Within countries the same is true. Little changes can trigger large consequences - in corporations, schools, churches, hospitals and neighborhoods. And this is why, despite everything, people - even individuals - still count.
     This is especially true because the changes that lie ahead are the consequences of conflict, not automatic progression. Thus in every one of the technologically advanced nations, backward regions struggle to complete their industrialization. They atttempt to protect their Second Wave factories and the jobs based on them. This places them in frontal conflict with regions that are already far advanced in building the technological base for Third Wave operations. Such battles tear society apart, but they also open many opportunities for effective political and social action.