One must have a clear definition of progress to determine whether any activities proposed in the name of progress are even relevant, let alone workable. We start with the concept that behaviors and activities that make each individual more capable within a generation, and ever more reliably capable with each succeeding generation, is progress. By definition, that type of progress is on behalf of achieving Destiny as defined earlier. Thus, humans can achieve progress to the extent that we are motivated to extend ourselves to the intellectual limits of our species, and then make the awesome, and somewhat scary, advance into subsequent forms of life that vastly exceed in capability anything we would define as human today.

That sounds like science fiction run amok. First, it attacks a fundamental and essentially unconscious premise that we are the highest form of life, at least on this planet. Religionists remind us that we were created in the image of God so there could not be a higher form. Aside from the fact that their supposition is oppressive, ask yourself how reasonable that belief is, when you consider the eyesight of the eagle and the speed of the cheetah, the longevity of turtles, and the offensive weapons of sharks and poisonous snakes. It seems that our minds are our only actual claim to superiority over what we loosely call the animal kingdom. Alas, our self-destructive behaviors towards each other and towards the rest of the animal kingdom and our physical environment frequently cause me to sincerely doubt that claim.

The human mind is significantly limited in its present form. Perpetuation of that form is a virtual guarantee that our violent history will indeed be repeated, over and over, simply with nastier weapons as we bend the products of research and applied technology to physical destruction and/or mental oppression.

Progress away from the present limitations of the human mind is not an option. It is a requirement. That means physiological change, not attitude adjustment classes. In short, the larger view of progress will be supported only to the extent that we use everything research and technology can provide to improve the functioning of the human mind. It is now obvious that one of those modifications will include genetic engineering. The issue isn't "should we risk creating genetically engineered humans?" It is "how soon can we harness technology to climb out of the limited evolutionary state we are in?"

Current politicians and religionists are quite vocal about their fear of evolutionary genetic engineering, and it is particularly appropriate to remember their favorite words about "playing God." Wake up and understand that this is not a game. There is no play involved. Will we continue to be limited and oppressed or will we grow? Recognize that your "leaders" will do everything possible to retain their power and/or wealth, and they feel threatened by the implications posed by genetic engineering, for it appears likely to undermine their current advantages.

Progress towards Destiny is the answer to the question about the purpose of life, as we know it. Think of the vast and wonderful world we have to experience, and the possibilities of the rest of the universe. Ask yourself if that "gift" is to be enjoyed only here as a kindergarten for the ignorant, or as an origin for our species to learn how to achieve Destiny. A change of your perspective in that area alone is an indicator of progress.

No matter how you may recoil initially from the discussions of Destiny and Progress, it is essential that you grasp, at a minimum, why our past and present focus on the past, and our apparent fixation with simply feeding and making more people, are so totally inappropriate. For the most part, we are running in little circles, because we do not acknowledge a Destiny of consequence that is achievable through human effort across many future generations.

Why is this so? One must look carefully at our lives, past and present, as individuals and as a species, to assess the underlying reasons or drivers for us to be as we are. We find that societies as a whole do the same things now that were done thousands of years ago, and that means stasis, not evolution. For all the searching for better ways of living, and all the experiments in ideologies, religions and political structures, we simply repeat the past. In terms of progress, that means we are the limiting factor.

As we individuals age, we notice that our infirmities and our accumulated experiences weigh heavily on our hopes for our present and the future. Yet these feelings are not known to our young people. They have yet to dash themselves against the limits of life as we know them, and they thus have the typical optimistic and joyful characteristics that we cherish. We remember, dimly, how wildly enthusiastic we were when we were young. We note, sadly, with the illusion of wisdom, that those hopes and dreams of youth will disappear as our children mature and "find their place in society." Having failed to mold life into what we wanted, and recognizing our finite span of life, we assume that no one else will be able to accomplish the huge task of rewriting the script for Humanity's future either.

All of this means that a paradigm shift in our perception is critical to change, and that no paradigm shift will occur until we develop and use effective means to evolve ourselves. Progress in the truest sense is dependent on our decision to change the "rules" or limiting factors that have haunted us since our beginning. Today, we can finally see one of the means to so doing. Real progress is possible.