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Mexico is a very interesting country. Mix of differences and seemingly unmixable extremes. It is a \ncountry with exceptionally rich cultural and anthropological area and the place where numerous \nimposing pre-Hispanic civilizations were created and destroyed. It is also a country with Mexico City \nwhich is the largest metropolis (the biggest city) in the world. This is a land in which the average \nstandard of living is not impressive (even though it is above the average of South America), which has \nlots of poverty, and yet it is a country where is situated the richest man on Earth (Carlos Slim). It is the \ncountry of the sombrero, mariachi, tequila and peculiar hot food. But it is also a country where drug \nlords are very strong and influentiel and crime is widespread on the steeets of the capital city, regardless \nof the fact one sees the police everywhere you go.<\/p>\n
I headed to Mexico, I must admit, foremost because I was attracted by the wealth of pre-Hispanic \ncivilizations and culture of the area, driven by the desire to understand better how some of the most \nimposing and interesting ancient civilizations mankind ever had were formed and how they disappeared. \nExactly on account of the mix between numerous civilizations, races and cultures, I had the opportunity \n(in the imposing Mexico City Anthropological Museum) to find out Mexico is, anthropologically, one of \nmost interesting destinations in the world, because of the fact today\u2019s population was created by \ncontacts between different Indian, white and black inhabitants (brought here by Spaniards as slaves). \nAccordingly, about 90 per cent of today\u2019s Mexican population are the result of population mixing (the so \ncalled mesticas), while about 10 per cent are Indian, with roots exclusively in pre-Hispanic civilizations.<\/p>\n
Mexico is a fairly large country (the population count is 110 million inhabitants and the country is divided \ninto 31 states), and as already mentioned \u2013 the capital of Mexico City is the largest city in the world with \nas many as 23 million people, stretching over the area 50 x 30 kilometers in size. There are numerous \ninteresting buildings and sights in it. For example, the Presidential Palace is the biggest building in South \nAmerica and it employs as many as 18 thousand civil servants, while the main square (Constitution \nSquare) is third largest in the world, right behind the Bejing\u2019s Tiananmen and the Moscow Red Square. \nJust off the main square, there is the cathedral built from the stone from Aztec pyramids that Spaniards \nfound there upon arrival. At the very same spot (where the main square and the cathedral are today), \ntherefore, there used to be a complex of Aztec pyramids. When Spaniards came and conquered them, \nthey demolished Aztec constructions and next built the cathedral, as well as numerous other churches in \nthe city.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/muller.test\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Mexico3-1-1024x768.jpg\")
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Mexico means \u201ca place on the Moon\u201d (in the Indian\/Aztec dialect of Nauvatl). The reason is as follows: \nan Aztec city was located at the very spot of today\u2019s Mexico City (Tenochtitl\u00e1n), and it resembled the face \nof the Moon, owing its name to it. As Tenochtitl\u00e1n was on a lake Spaniards dried out upon conquest, \ntoday\u2019s Mexico City is a city that continuously depresses i.e. decreases its above the sea level, so the \ndowntown area thus sank as many as twelve meters during the past 100 years.<\/p>\n
Strolling down the streets of Mexico City, one cannot not but to notice a large number of armed \npolicemen, located everywhere (with automatic rifles, on occasion even with armoured vehicles), in the \nstreet, in front of monuments, churches and all more important sights and institutions. Also, guides and \nhotel staff explicitly warned me on numerous occasions to definitely go just for taxis previously ordered \nby the hotel, restaurant or some other reliable venue by telephone, because otherwise I could \npotentially experience some unpleasant surprises. While I walked around the main squre in broad \ndaylight, I firsthand and in plain sight had the opportunity of witnessing a seemingly innocent argument \nbetween van driver and street vendors evolve into a general, pretty serious fight, accompanied by an \nsignificant dose of aggression (especially on the part of street vendors who chased a driver around the \nsquare). Fortunatelly, the fight was soon stopped by the armed police force that calmed things down. My \nguide explained the significant crime rate by the combination of the large number of uneducated \nimmigrants and the sheer size of the city. However this might be, Mexico City is no place for careless \nevening strolls and one must make very calculated decisions when to move, where and with whom, as \nwell as how to interact with people there.<\/p>\n
In contrast to Mexico City, Cancun is, as a tourist hub and a frequent destination for American tourists, \nexceptionally safe at any time of day, and there are no police in it every step of the way. Cancun \ndefinitely represents a very inspiring tourism success story. Until thirty years ago, this was a deserted \nisland\/peninsula, while today it is certainly one of the top 10 tourist destinations in the world. Success \nsecrets can be ascribed to climate (especially in winter \u2013 high season lasts from December to February), \nlovely nature, exceptionally high concentration of high category hotels achieved through the years, the \ncloseness of USA and very good air connectivity to it, the immediate vicinity of cultural sights (Yucatan, \nMayas), and already discussed high level of safety that is not characteristic of all Mexican destinations.<\/p>\n
Also, Cancun offers a significant number of interesting fun sites for the younger population. Thus, for \nexample, the central evening fun venue is the superclub Coco Bongo, which in a peculiar manner \ncombines elements of disco, Broadway, Cirque du Soleil and a multimedia show. One must wonder \nwhether this is the direction fun and evening going out for the younger population are heading. For \nexample, during my stay in the club, at a point, I was able to see clips from movies such as showa<\/em>\u00a0te se \u010dovjek mora zapitati je li upravo to smjer u kojem se kre\u0107e budu\u0107nost zabave i ve\u010dernjih izlazaka mla\u0111e populacije. Primjerice, za vrijeme boravka u klubu u jednom trenutku mo\u017eete vidjeti isje\u010dke iz filmova poput Spartacus<\/em>, Gladiator<\/em>\u00a0i and Passion<\/em>with the instant change to a show with five to six half-naked artist gymnasts, \nhanging from the ceiling on linen rope, simulating own crucifixion. The ropes go some ten meters up, \nwhile the artists acrobat to music that sounds \u201cdestiny like\u201d and powerful \u2013 especially with the perfect \nsound system the club has. Somewhat bizarre, but definitely effective: the result was the crowd went \nwild, rose to their feet and started screaming in approval. The following scene included a costumed \nCaptain America fighting the bad guy on the large stage in the middle of the club (both jump around \neffectively). Next, an effective performance from the musical Chicago<\/em>followed by a singer resembling \nBeyonce in stature and voice, performing her greatest hits to effective scenography and accompanying \ndance acts. All in all, an interesting mix of everything with a fairly high production quality \u2013 something I \ndefinitely had not had the opportunity to see in such form before.<\/p>\n Restaurants in Cancun are also great. For example, the lobsters I had the opportunity to have at \nLorenzillo\u2019s restaurant are probably my best ever. The restaurant offers heftly portions of crust free \nlobster with side dishes, all at about a price of HRK 200 - which is significantly less we would have to pay \nin Croatia for example for a smilar dish. Also, apart from of course interesting and genuine Mexican \n \n \nrestaurants, both Cancun and Mexico City have great Argentine restaurants \u2013 right behind impeccable \nBuenos Aires ones in my opinion.<\/p>\n If we compare what tourism has to offer in Cancun with what we offer in Croatian destinations, one must \nsee just how backward the Croatian approach to tourism and tourist content is. We have no such \nconcentration of offer like one can witness in Cancun and any new projects that can offer that are \nunfortunately boycotted by the differ interest groups. Like for example golf course above Dubrovnik or in \nIstria \u2013 which is to be honest connected with lack of transparency but without demonstrated wish from \nall stakeholders to conduct this project in an acceptable manner. With such backward thinking not \noriented towards development, it is impossible to expect more significant advance in development of \nour tourist product and thereby more significant improvements of results in Croatia.<\/p>\n Mexicans are generally very likeable people, but I found them to be fairly unclear and confusing in \ncommunication \u2013 in part probably because of not so great knowledge of English language. For example \nevery guide (and I had a few of them for they were changing daily) had his or her version of the story of \nCortes and Montezuma, and presented different information on the number of inhabitants in Mexico \nCity.<\/p>\n Near Mexico City, there are remnants of the ancient city called Teotihuac\u00e1n. It belonged to a civilization \nwhich lasted from 100 to 750 AD. The city, according to historians\u2019 estimates, had between 100,000 and \n200,000 people and was simultaneously the largest and most advanced city in South America at the \ntime. After 750, it was suddenly and according to some - mysteriously abandoned. Historians assume \nthe inhabitants exploited the nature of the area excessively (they cleared the forests, destroyed the \ntrees, animals escaping), so, finally they had to leave the city since the situation was not sustainable nor \nadequate for continuation of life in it.<\/p>\n In the area of Mexico, there were five principal civilizations during the pre-Hispanic era. These are, as per \nchronology: Olmecs, Teotihuac\u00e1ns, Maya, Toltecs and Aztecs. These main civilizations controlled up to six \nhundred lesser civilizations, which is why we today have over six hundred different Indian dialects.<\/p>\n The last great civilization that functioned in the area of Mexico was the Aztec civilization \u2013 which fell with \nthe arrival of Spaniards to the territory. This is the well known tale of the Spanish conquistador Hernan \nCortes and the Aztec chief Montezuma, which shows even seemingly impossible things and military wins \nare nevertheless possible. Thus Cortes was with as little as five hundred men, able to enslave the whole \nAztec empire consisiting of about 200,000 people. None would really have placed any bets on him. A lot \nof factors here converged in order things to happen as they did. For a start Aztecs believed in the \nprophecy about arrival of a blond man who was actually a god called Quetzalcoatl and was supposed to \nreturn in this shape. So seeing Cortes, they firstly thought he was the one. Therefore they did not dare to \nattack him from the start \u2013 which they probably would have if things had been different. Furthermore, \nCortes was lucky to have translators who were acquainting him with the situation between Maya and \nAztec ranks, so he was able to reach the right decisions and moves. These were a Spaniard who lived \nwith the Maya, and who had come on a Spanish ship in 1511, staying to live among them. Besides them \nthere was a woman named Marina of Aztec origin, who spoke the Aztec language. She lived with the \nMaya, and the Maya gave her to Corez as a gift together with other some twenty women.<\/p>\n When he arrived to the shores of Yucatan in 1519, Cortes\u2019 first contact was with the Mayas. After initial \nsmaller fights, he managed to maintain peace and later bring the translators to his camp which proved to \nbe crucial. When Cortes heard the center of the whole region is in Tenochtitl\u00e1n, a large city full of \nrichness and gold (at the time, no city in Spain, nor Europe, did not have a population nowhere near this \nfigure) and especially after receiving Montezuma\u2019s delegation bringing gifts and gold trusting Cortes is a \nreturning god, Cortes decided to fo after gold at any cost since this is his moment. He burned all the \nships so that there was no return, so the only option remained was to win over Aztecs and to conquer \ntheir capital. Along the way he also found allies in other Indian tribes as for example Tlaskaletks, who \nhated Aztecs because of their dominiation and who join Cortes in his quest to conquer them.<\/p>\n At the close of 1519, Montezuma received Cortes in his palace peacefully and offering him with gifts, \nthus hoping he would avoid struggle and bloodshed. This proved a fatal judgement. Having enjoyed the \nguest status at the palace for a while, Cortes took Montezuma hostage and tried to use him to quell the \nAztec mutiny that broke out in April 1521. The result of this was that Aztecs stoned Montezuma to \ndeath. After some time and following significant human casualties, Cortes managed to break the siege \nand run away from Tenochtitl\u00e1n. During summer Cortes replenished his forces and strengthened his \nalliances, returning at the close of 1520 to start a months\u2019 long siege of Tenochtitl\u00e1n which resulted in \nthe final fall of the city and the defeat of Aztec forces on 13th of August 1521.<\/p>\n Another devastating circumstance for Aztecs and domestic Indian population in general was the fact they \nwere not immune to diseases Spaniards brought along and which proved to be fatal fot the local \npolulation. Cortes\u2019 crew was composed of ex-convicts who had some of the diseases raging over Europe \nat the time (smallpox, syphilis). Indians, who were not immune to them, succumbed to a great epidemic \namong the local population. A thing that could have been proclaimed as a deficiency and a flaw of \nCortes\u2019 units, finally proved to be one of his most powerful weapons. Several sick convicts became one \nof Cortes\u2019 most devastating weapons against natives, because these deseases were new and fatal for \nthem.<\/p>\n Ono \u0161to je u po\u010detku dodatno zbunilo Asteke u sukobima sa \u0160panjolcima jesu velike razlike u na\u010dinu borbe izme\u0111u njih i \u0160panjolaca. Asteci i Maje zarobljavali bi pa potom \u017ertvovali svoje zarobljenike, dok bi \u0160panjolci odmah ubijali protivnike pristupaju\u0107i ubijanjima isklju\u010divo hladno i pragmati\u010dno, za razliku od Asteka koji su ih koristili u religiozne i ritualne svrhe.<\/p>\n What initially also confused Aztecs during fighting with Spaniards were great differences in the style of \nfighting between themselves and Spaniards. Aztecs and the Maya would capture and sacrifice their \nprisoners, while Spaniards killed them instantly, approaching execution in a cold and pragmatic manner, \nin contrast to Aztecs who used them for religious and ritual purposes.<\/p>\n In any case, one can conclude Spaniards and Europeans were at the time much more aggressive and \npredatory or conquering oriented civilization. Also due to chance to travel morel, they were much more \nused and resistant to new and unexpected events, while Aztecs and other Indians lived in their closed \necosystem until new and unexpected factor fully unbalanced them. And according to Darwin himself - \nthe most adaptive ones will finally prevail and survive. Which is exactly what happened at this occasion. Apocalypto<\/em>\u00a0(koji je sniman na Yucatanu i koji je kombinacija stvarnih elemenata i filmske izmi\u0161ljotine) vjerojatno se sje\u0107aju vrlo eksplicitnih i potresnih scena \u017ertvovanja s puno divlja\u0161tva i krvi. Krvave scene \u017ertvovanja kod Asteka su vjerojatno bile ba\u0161 tako brutalne kako su prikazane u tom filmu \u2013 s va\u0111enjem srca, punjenjem ljudskom krvlju velikih kamenih posuda\/oltara i sli\u010dno.<\/p>\n Even though Indians may comment that Spaniards defeted them in a ruthless and non fair manner (by \nusing lies, tricks and diseases), we must also say that civilizations which ruled there prior to the coming \nof Spaniard (the Maya, followed by Aztecs) were just as bloody and ruthless. Their beliefs and cults were \nbased on constant sacrifice and lots of blood. Those who have, for example, seen Mel Gibson\u2019s \nApocalypto (filmed in Yucatan; a combination of factual elements and fiction) probably remember quite \n \n \nexplicit and grizzly scenes of sacrifice, including a lot of savagery and blood. The bloody scenes of \nsacrifice in case of Aztecs were, it is likely, as brutal as portrayed \u2013 ripping hearts out, filling stone vessels \nand altars with human blood, and the like.<\/p>\n What one can possibly conclude from this story is that conflict between two civilizations was resolved in \nway that more aggressive, cunning and conquest oriented civilization prevailed \u2013 and not necessarily \nmore advanced civlization (in matters of mathematics, astronomy and certain other things, for example, \nAztecs were far superior than Spaniards). Furthermore we can see relativity of time perspective \u2013 today, \nit seems to us our civilization is so important, while, yet again, its form as we know it was forged during \nthe past one hundred years (by the industrial revolution, technology advancement and the two world \nwars). Civilizations have functioned for hundreds and thousands of years, only to vanish over night. The \nsole difference today is the exceptional interconnectivity and quantity of information and great \ndevastation power in contemporary arms, leading to the fact a super power can hardly fall without \ndevastating consequences for the entire world (except in case of internal collapse, such as witnessed in \ncase of USSR during 1990s). Also, it is important to note that conquering smaller countries by greater \nand stronger ones is today mostly done through means of the economy (since modern global economy is \nso much interdependent, smaller countires\/economies can not but to adopt to the bigger ones and so \nthe bigger unes can use this negotiating power to have pressure and influence on the smaller ones).<\/p>\n One cannot also overlook the importance of religion in the conflict between Spaniards and Aztecs and \npossible conclusion that it matters how advanced and firmly followed is religion of each side in clashes of \ntwo civilizations. Man cannot forget historical fact that mighty Roman Empire in the beginning tried to \nwipe Christianity out and murder Christians every step of the way, while in the end adopted this religion \nas the official religion which finally survived the very empire.<\/p>\n Immediately upon arrival, Spaniards actively spread Christianity among the local population. Franciscans \ncontributed to this most, heading into Indian territory right upon Spaniards\u2019 arrival to enlighten the \npopulation. Moreover, the sighting of the Lady of Guadalupa (in 1531) i.e. the Virgin Mary in Mexico by \nJuan Diego helped in spreading the Christian faith among locals. Those with an evil eye would say the \nsighting was perfectly timed to promote and spread religion, but some of the aspects of the sighting \nwere never fully explained in rational terms, so Our Lady of Guadalupa is definitely even today the \nprotector of Mexico in the religious sense.<\/p>\n It is estimated that, some thirty years ago, there were about 90 per cent Catholics in Mexico, while this \nfigure is about 65 per cent today. Catholicism in Mexico took over (especially in case of Indians) some \nelements of former beliefs of Indians as well, so, instead of gods of nature, there are saints protectors of \nagriculture, rain, sun etc. Also, the propensity of most religious Mexicans for Christian fanaticism, which \nthey exhibit by submitting themselves to certain elements of martyrdom and by simulating the way to \nthe cross, including a lot of blood and, sometimes, even actual crucifixion, can be perhaps explained by \nthe connection of the Indian population to the ancient traditions of sacrifice and holy letting of blood for \nritual and religion in general. Thus, Catholicism in Mexico represents a good example of how religion can \nsuccessfully adapt to a new environment, history and prior beliefs.<\/p>\n Along with Aztecs who simultaneously represent the last great pre-Hispanic civilization, the most famous \n \n \ncivilization in the area are the Maya, functioning in the areas of Yucatan, Honduras, Salvador and Belize \nfor over 3,000 years (2000 BC \u2013 1500 AD). The period can be subdivided into three great intervals: \npre-classical (2000 BC \u2013 1500 BC), classical (300 \u2013 900 AD), and post-classical period (900 \u2013 1500 AD), \ngiven that the peak of the civilization occurred during the classical period.<\/p>\n It is generally well known the Maya were exceptionally advanced astrologers (even for today\u2019s \nstandards), but it is probably less known they were probably \u201cthe first football players in the world.\u201d The \ngame the Maya (Aztecs as well) ritually practised was the so-called game of life and death, during which \ntwo teams of seven players each would try to outplay each other by getting the rubber ball through a \nstone hoop at the side of the court. The difference in terms of today\u2019s football is the best player of the \nwinning team (it is believed so) was sacrificed to gods and this was quite an honour. I doubt today \nsomebody would sacrifice Cristiano Ronaldo or Leo Messi to gods due to both - humane and commercial \nreasons (especially the later one \uf04a). The Maya understood time in a cyclical fashion, not linearly as we do today. The basis of it all was the 52 \nyear cycle divided into 4 periods of 13 years each, so a new cycle would start every 52 years (at the time \nwhen the solar calendar of 365 days and the lunar calendar of 260 days align). The great cycle of 5,026 \nyears ends precisely on 21 December 2012, and this date is interpreted by some as doomsday. The Maya \nenvisioned a change in magnetic poles of the Earth could occur at the time (the end of the fifth Mayan \nage), and that natural catastrophes and the like could come to be. Many used this for marketing \npurposes, ascribing meaning to the date as end of the world (such matters regularly rouse interest and \nsell well), even though, based on all I heard and saw, I can conclude for myself the Maya thought more in \nterms of a great cycle ending and a new one beginning.<\/p>\n The influence of the Mayan civilization decresed significantly around 900 AD, and there are people that \nascribe even certain mysterious meaning to this. In contrast to Aztecs who were conquered by an \noutside force, it is assumed the reason to the implosion of the Mayan empire were internal strife and, \nalso unsustainable exploitation of nature around the cities they built \u2013 which led to the inability of the \ncontinuation of life in these areas (clearing forests for construction etc. \u2013 just as was mentioned in case \nof Teotihuac\u00e1n). The Maya thus brought the situation in their cities to unsustainable level, so they could \nno longer function. This surely represents a message for the world of today, when we increasingly \ndiscuss sustainability due to CO2<\/sub>\u00a0emission levels and the greenhouse effect. The view to the greenery \naround the ruins of ancient cities reveals our \u201cold Earth\u201d is feisty and always recovers from different \nnatural catastrophes, but this sometimes requires generations for recovery if we do not pay attention do \nwe treat nature and environment around us in a sustainable way.<\/p>\n Thinking of the Maya, the creation and the vanishing of their civilization, their prophecies and tales of \ndoomsday, I had to ask myself what doomsday really means.<\/p>\n The fall of civilizations and the changes to the natural circumstances of life is something that has always \noccurred throughout history \u2013 advanced and powerful civilizations that have existed for thousands of \nyears even (Egypt, Rome, Babylon, Maya etc.) fell in this sense once people lost faith in their functioning. \nRome and Maya\/Aztecs were shaken and next destroyed by the coming of Christianity and by the fact \nthey functioned based on certain beleifs and value systems, which were fundamentally shaken by the \n \n \ncoming of Christianity, and, therefore, the belief in the system was not as solid as before. In South \nAmerica, all of this was accompanied by the Spanish military force which physically conquered the \nterritory, while in case of Rome the system imploded, only then to become the subject of the conquest \nby Germanic and Slavic tribes.<\/p>\n The Maya were exceptionally advanced mathematicians and astrologers, while their constructions were \nalways built to reflect the movement of the sun and that the sun beams fall exactly at a certain place in \ncertain time. Their whole belief system was based on astrologically cyclical interpretations of the forces \nof nature. The leaders, who were educated most, used the knowledge to predict nature (especially \nduring the classical period between 300 and 900 AD, when they had the status of gods), convincing their \nsubjects thay had the divine powers of prediction. The Christian religion, on the other hand, is based on \nthe power of thought, not interpretation of nature and is thus far more sophisticated and advanced. \nTherefore in the clash of these two systems of beliefs, eventually more modern and more powerful \nreligion dominated South America as (put aside authenticity in order to remain objectivity). On the other \nhand in Asia great majority of the nations, although also conquered by Europeans, remained their \noriginal religions since they had stong Budhist, Muslim and Hyndu religions (also based on the power of \nthought and not\/less on the power of nature).<\/p>\n How solid are the foundations of today\u2019s civilization and what are the possibilities for \u201cdoomsday\u201d in the \nsense of significant changes in civilizational premises and the fall of today\u2019s centers of power?<\/p>\n First of all, we are witnessing the whole world, especially since 2008, experiencing a chain reaction and \nrealizing the systems of most countries are, in the long term, not sustainable in the financial and \neconomic sense. Simply we spend more then we create. Current democratic systems are further \nencouraging this, because people vote for those who promise more and now. An additional point of \ninstability is the unsustainability of increases in CO2<\/sub>\u00a0emissions which could trigger natural disasters \u2013 we \nhave come to realize this during the past ten years or so. Third, and perhaps the greatest source of \ninstability is increasing inequality in society and the disappearance of the middle class. The process is \nespecially visible in developed countries because jobs for those with low qualifications (or even some \nwith high qualifications, independently of location, such as software engineers) are being moved to \ndeveloping countries. This is a potential \u201cbomb\u201d for the centers of power today \u2013 primarily for USA. \nStoping these processes would clash with the laws of the open markets and the goals of companies to \nincrease their profits each quarter (which is what the market of capital of today is based upon). So, the \npotential timed bomb of dissatisfaction could have been seen during the recent protests in Wall Street \nand the whole world, even though the level of dissatisfaction is obviously not sufficient enough for mass \nprotests yet. Rulling can always say that they were elected by the democratic election system and \ntherefore use (false) argumentation that people can always vote differently and change the situation \nduring next elections if they want to do so.<\/p>\n These are all reasons why one cannot proclaim today\u2019s system and today\u2019s civilization (especially with \nthe internet and mass accesability of information) fully stable and why it will be necessary to change its \nfunctioning \u2013 unless we want system to collapse in a painful way, and with unintended consequences. \nTherefore, let us wish the 21 December 2012 is really a beginning of a new cycle in which the system will \n \n \nadjust so it is sustainable, just and prosperous for all people and society in general.<\/p>\n Foundation of the system as we know it today happened through numerous world revolutions (Russia, \nChina) and two devastating world wars. Let us hope further evolution of the system will be less bloody. \nFinally, even if happens some devastating catastrophe and\/or war that would bring great change and \nunintended consequences of cataclysmic proportions, it is possible some archaeologists will, in a \nthousand years, research the ruins of today\u2019s civilization to figure out what really happened. The point is \nplanet Earth and humanity are tough and whatever happens, there will be a way to adapt and develop in \nnew and unpredictable ways in the long run.<\/p>\n In such a perspective (that the Maya describe in a cyclical fashion), we cannot but be more modest and \naware that the moment we live in is just a drop in the ocean in the long process of development of life \non earth and humanity in general. And by understanding that, our tolerance and the desire to find long \nterm sustainable and just systems (which are the only ones that enable continuous growth and \nprosperity of civilizations) should be greater and more spread within the overall population. With such \nattitude and approach, the probability for significant \u201cearthquakes\u201d in the functioning of our civilization \nor even for potential doomsday - will be reduced significantly. Of course that even then some natural \ndisaster can happen that we have no control of, but this is something that is in we could say \u201cGod\u2019s \nhands\u201d. But we should not worry about such things.<\/p>\n An old prayer\/saying (that first appears related to Francis of Assisi, but also in a similar fashion expressed \nby the Sioux Indians) says: \u201cLord, grant me the strength to accept the things I cannot change,\u200b\nhe courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference\u201d. We must turn to what \neach of us can do for our civilization, country and the local community as an individual, to make them \nbetter and more sustainable in the long term. This is what we leave to new generations. By doing so we \nwill not only decrease the probability of our civilization being wiped or hurt by some great cataclysm on \n21st of December 2012 or on some other date, but we will also certainly feel better.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Josip Muller, 17th of January 2012<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Interesantna je destinacija taj Meksiko \u2013 mje\u0161avina razli\u010ditosti i naizgled nespojivih krajnosti. S jedne strane izuzetno bogat kulturalni i antropolo\u0161ki prostor te mjesto nastanka i nestanka brojnih impozantnih prethispanskih civilizacija, a s druge pak strane zemlja s najve\u0107im gradom na svijetu \u2013 suvremenim megapolisom Mexico Cityjem. Zemlja je to u kojoj prosje\u010dni \u017eivotni standard nije […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1875,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/826"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=826"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2009,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/826\/revisions\/2009"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mullerjosip.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"http:\/\/muller.test\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Mexico4-1024x768.jpg\")
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