United States Naval Academy - Lucky Bag Yearbook (Annapolis, MD)

Page 11 text:

i Since the time man First became endowed with hopes for a peaceful existence, he has realized he cannol attain this goal without the cooperation ol those who live about him. Man was barbaric in the beginning, and cooperation was a new and un- familiar concept. el the hopes were there and the desires strong, both demanding their lullillment. But what a thought it is to consider the profound change wrought within man 1 the process of Ins civilization. Through the formation ol communities governed h laws, man evolved from a primitive barbarian to his present state. ithin these communities, through cooperation with his lei low- and a partial submission of his own in- terest to theirs, man was more easily able to provide for his own basic needs. An increasing portion of his time was released from the for- merly ceaseless toil ol just providing for his existence and made avail- able lor other tasks. All the line works and achievements of mankind can rightfully he considered a result of these improved conditions. Further, there is no reason to suspect that man ' s advances in science and the understanding of himself shall not continue. The limits to the achievements of humanity are not vet visible. All these improvements are the profits of the realization by in- dividual men that their interests were very much ' the same as the in- terests of their fellows, and that they could be fulfilled more easily through cooperation. This situation remains true for all men for all time. Nevertheless, in spite of those accomplishments achieved through mutual cooperation, a tremendous task remains before us. The crea- tion of strife and disharmony are methods still used by dictatorial leaders of enslaved nations in furthering their selfish ends. k

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8 J» ' ne Mess 1 ? the {can peop le cooper ' c0 ncept that P e To tHe et ' eT may e-uen iu« may K ' l the lly f inC r , tUat P r j the eanS judges die that wjars be i° ,To tKe con lit coop er i«e con} luty ■„h, stle .of fc lig ht •i, socie to h rtM HeP e ° } . fi w h Ug to ot,T , „, it 10 , . ie ic« ted Hates often •11 briaS , . .Hat tna H« s long see perfect Har ny- To these v ilea ' : The Class o Ni etee .Si -Jse ■- ! ■ ■ W 3 -- 4 t fr '

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These are outlaw methods, scorned hy the majority of stable and free-thinking men. The promises of peace and coopera- tion must now enlighten the thinking of all humanity. All strife, all disharmony, must be exterminated before the ultimate realization of a world encompassed with enlightened thinking is reached. This is our task today, a task never fully attempted before. a task requiring dedicated and untiring effort. The necessity for all nations to live together in harmony has sig- nificantly increased since yesteryear. It now has become a matter of survival. Though force, in past centuries, could produce tangible re- sults for the victor, each new development in the instruments of war has lessened the chance of successful recourse to it. Science lias pre- sented us with the prospect of a war that will know no victor. Moreover, the technological advances of recent years have so shrunk the distances separating nations, that the al lairs ol one nation are most definitely the concern of others. Men have grouped together and ordered their lives with laws to claim the benefits of unified, regulated actions. Certainly nations could do likewise, to the benefit of the world. Our own century has seen two major efforts to bring the world- wide community of nations into responsive, mutual accord. We can only surmise at what would have been the course of events which led to World War II had the League of Nations been endowed with suf- ficient effectiveness to maintain peace and order. Its successor, the present United Nations, although profiting from the mistakes of the past and growing stronger through each crisis, still has not brought about the world unity to which it aspires.