Our age sees itself as superior to those of the past not because of its superior wisdom, but, because of the power it exerts over nature. This power is not just the immediate events, such as the ability to provide comfort in harsh environments, such as rain, wind, cold, heat and raw physical elements. But, a larger perspective. The understanding of seasons, of periods of time. Of meteorites. Of solar flares. Of large scale events that affect entire parts of the globe. The ability to control these things and allow people to do what they want when they want is a key element of what makes one able to belong to a first-world country. Exactly how much of this power a given culture possesses ranks it. If you look at “third-world” countries, they would be identical to what Columbus encountered. Slightly below subsistence level are the uncultured communities who have no grasp or control over nature. To them, nature is still a raw power to be appeased and awed. To us, those of the “civilized” world, these powers are merely natural phenomenon. To them, God is still alive, everywhere. When we begin presuming the power of God, he is not longer present. It is when we begin to see the power of nature as something we possess that we move up in the order of world powers. I contend it’s not anything special that makes higher-order powers unique, but, what portions of nature they have control over. Whether it is in understanding naturalistic phenomenon and being able to adapt or plan accordingly or whether it is the actual ability to predict, prevent and “control” natural events.

I need to look into the etymology and history of control.