Incident
Described
(in
the book of j.heapes: Other Worlds,
Ufos, Aliens, and the Afterlife)
Artur
Berlet
drove a tractor for the municipality
of Sarandi, Rio
Grande
do
Sul, in Brazil. He was a part-time
photographer, married
with
two children. He had a
three-year-old daughter and
one-year-
old
son. The book described this
incident as one of the earliest
abductions
in
modern times.
Artur
was
gone for nine terrestrial days, from
May 14 to 23,
1958.
He
was walking to the city of Sarandi
at about 7:00 a.m.,
and
had just passed a farm (belonging to
Dr. Dionisio Peretti). The
witness
then
saw a strange light above some trees
about two
hundred
meters
(656 feet) away, and he came to
within one
hundred
feet
of it. He observed a rounded object,
approximately
one
hundred feet in diameter, with a
construction of what looked
like
two bowls inverted one on top of the
other. The UFO had a
red-to-ash-colored
opaque
light coming from it. Two shadows
then
appeared,
and
a strong beam of light hit the
witness as he lost
consciousness.
He
reported going to another planet in
a UFO, which was thirty
meters
(ninety-eight
feet) in diameter, propelled by
solar energy,
and
shaped like the one he saw over the
trees. The trip took thirty
hours
and
covered sixty-two million
kilometers. The spacecraft
traveled
at
four hundred to five hundred
kilometers per second.
When
he awoke, he found himself in a
milky white hospital
bed
on a craft. The room was rectangular
with one rounded side.
The
aliens fastened his arms, loosened
them, lifted him up, and
took
him to a nearby compartment. They
gave him a Long cape with
sleeves
extending
to his feet.
illustration up
- some similar "here"
After
the
craft had landed, they took him into
a street where he
saw
buildings of various colors and
types. The streets were six feet
wide,
with
many pedestrians dressed in
strange-colored jumpsuits
and
no vehicular traffic. Aircraft
Landed on tops of buildings.
Two
beings escorted Artur into a tall,
metal building with an
interior
of
upholstery-like cloth. Exterior
building walls emitted
light
that
nearly blinded him. He was in a
temporary prison with
walls
of
a thick, furry fabric. Water gushed
out of a pipe, and there
was
a small table and a bed. He lied
down and felt hungry. Two
males
and
a female entered his room and
brought him food that
looked
like
gelatin. They also gave him dark,
grain-like bread and
something
like
soup. The witness described some of
this food as
having
a
repugnant smell.
Another
being
with a smile on his face patted
Artur on the back
as
if to say, Calm down; everything is
okay.
They then entered a five- to
six-story building, where he
undressed in a bathroom,
showered,
and
dressed in trousers and a shirt.
Previously, the aliens
had
treated the witness as a prisoner,
but now they treated him as a
guest.
Artur
found
himself in a room with a rectangular
table and high-
backed
chairs.
There were about fifteen others in
the space. Soon, a
heavyset,
middle-aged
male alien, with a juvenile smile
entered and
told
Artur to sit down. When Artur
asked the alien's name, he
replied,
Acorc
Cat. The beings reassured Artur,
and then they
ate.
When
finished, they each said good-bye by
placing a hand on
Arturs
shoulder.
Artur and the creatures boarded a
vehicle, and
then,
with
the touch of a lever, they ascended.
Solar energy
powered
the
vehicle. Although no vehicles drove
on the ground,
they
filled the sky. Acorc took Artur to
visit his family in their city,
Con.
Their
vehicle landed on a pad outside the
familys
apartment
on
the tenth floor. They went into a
room furnished with
a
small table and a screen on the
wall. Acorc Cat's wife was on the
screen.
Acorc
called his friend, Tuec, on a phone,
and, shortly
afterward,
Acorcs
wife and daughter arrived.
The
daughter had blue eyes and
straw-colored hair that fell over
her
shoulders. She was tall, with an
oval face, white skin, a
medium-size
mouth
and lips, and a thin nose. She wore
a dress that
fell
to her feet, with embroidery on the
sleeves and bodice. She
asked
Artur
if he had a large family, and if he
was comfortable
being
on
another planet. She peppered him
with a host of other
questions.
illustration up
- some similar "here" on Earth
They
then went in an elevator to a
terrace that looked out over a
majestic
and
beautiful city. (See
chapter
4, A Friendly Family,
in UFO Contact from
Planet Acart. German
ed.) Acorc pointed out
universities,
factories,
and government buildings. When Artur
felt
hungry,
he
asked how many meals a day they ate.
Acorc replied,
Five.
Acorc
told Artur that he would meet the
Son of the Sun,
who
was their governor. It was he who
would determine if, and
when,
Artur
could return to Earth. Acorc told
Artur he had to be
unconscious
on
his trip back for his own physical
safety. They
dropped
him
off about three miles from his city
(Sarandi, Brazil).
Artur
was
weak, but arrived home nine days
after disappearing.
Planets
Environment.
There
were
twenty billion inhabitants on Acart.
It was not a blue
planet,
even
though it had an ocean. It had four
colors: one from
the
ground, another from the water,
another from the corona around
the
globe of their planet, and another
that came up almost as far as
the
space platform (thirty-one thousand
miles from Acart). The
weather
on
the planet was intensely cold, but
there was a warm
beach
area.
The beach had sand and a row of
trees. The witness
described
it
as a veritable paradise."(See
chapter
19, Marine
Recreation, in UFO Contact
from Planet Acart.)
This
planet had only one season. The sky
was almost the color of lead, and
the sun
was
not as brilliant as Earths. There
were continents separated by
seas,
at
least one river, and a mountainous
region. There was no
moon,
but
there were two gigantic, orbiting
space platforms
populated
with
thousands of beings and vehicles.
Acart had some
very
large cities, and the capital was
Con, where Acorc and his
family
lived.
Demography:
Aliens
Characteristics
Acartians
looked
much like humans, but paler. As a
race, they were
white
with
straw-colored or dark hair. They had
a medium stature,
but
were greater in size than humans.
Their blood was blue, not
red.
The
witness reported about individual
Acartians, not the beings
as a
group. For instance, the wife of the
Son of the Sun was tall and
a
little heavy, with straw-colored
hair. Her skin was deathly pallid
and
ashened. Her mouth was not too big,
but she had full, slightly
protruding
lips.
She had a fine semi long nose, and
bright, large,
active
eyes.
This creature examined all who
passed by. She had an
independent
personality.
The
son of the Son of the Sun, was
ten years old, and had the
same
personality and similar looks as his
mother. The daughter was
sixteen
or
seventeen years old. She was
slender, tall, and Flat as a
board,
without
any curves. Her neck was long and
slender. Artur
was
afraid of her Pointed chin, gash of
a mouth, long teeth, and
narrow
and
long nose. Her eyes were more oval,
like Cleopatra's,
and
her hair was long and loose with
little color to it.
(See chapter
11,
A
Lunch with the Son of the Sun, in
UFO Contact from
Planet
Acart.)
Purpose/Message
The
Acartians had three reasons for
contacting humans, They
wanted
to:
(1)
learn about humans;
(2)
instruct earthlings in the use
of
solar energy, persuading them to
give up atomic energy; and
(3)explore
Earth,
which Acartians wanted to occupy
alter humans
killed
themselves
in a nuclear war they foresaw to
come!
They
abducted
Artur for bread! They told
Artur they wanted him
to
teach them how to grow grain for
bread. Their bread grew on
trees,
and
it did not taste too good to them.
They wanted to learn
how
to plant wheat.
Culture
Non
material
Components of Culture
Acartian
years,
months, days, and hours translated
into the
following
formula:
1
year = 353 days (but, every 6 years,
they drop 1 day = 352 days)
11
months = 1 year
32
days = 1 month (the first month has
33 days except in the
year
that has 32 days)
46
hours = 1 day (Acartian hours are
divided into 1/10ths and
1/100ths)
(Inconsistency
with
the numbers cited [e.g., 32 days x
11 months =
352
days,
and not 353 days) is due to a
discrepancy in the original
text.)
In
Earth terms, Acartian time translate
into the following
(according
to
Berlets calculations):
1
Acartian year = 675 Earth days (1.8
Earth years)
1
Acartian month = 61 days and 8 hours
Earth time
1
Acartian hour = 7 hours and 40
minutes Earth time
Artur
forgot
the names of the meals, but he felt
that Acartians
ate
all day; he also said that they
never ate a meal without saying
a
prayer. Acartians consumed alcoholic
beverages in their homes,
but
not
in public places. Such drink
was made from fruit. They
went
to bed at four-tenths of the first
hour of the night.
Values
The
following values formed the
foundation of the Acartian
society:
Workan
Acartian
value, evident from the fact
that all
Acartians
were
eager to work. The impression was
that
Acartians
had
a Marxian viewpoint. They
distinguished
between
work
and labor. The first was desirable,
and the
second
was
drudgery.
Noninterferenceanother
Acartian
value, and a
principle
that
guided their relations with those
from
other
planets.
They felt compelled by their
religious and
moral
beliefs
neither to interfere with the
internal
workings
of
other planets nor to invade them.
Competition
and
Recreationtwo other Acartian
values,
as
witnessed by the sports they played.
(Apparently,
these
two values were extremely
important,
as
they commanded the longest chapter
in
UFO
Contact
from Planet Acart (chapter 25];
or,
perhaps,
this
simply reflected the values of the
book's
author.)
Equalityanother
Acartian
value, deduced from the
fact
that they did not have a system of
stratification.
Such
a system would recognize inequality
among
individuals,
so
the lack of one would effectively
Indicate
that
they valued equality. In fact, their
governor
(the
Son of the Sun) was an equal among
Acartian
citizens.
He
neither lived in a better house nor
sat in a
plush
area
at public events (e.g., sporting
events).
Compassion
and
Peacetwo other Acartian values.
Acartians
saw
that God created all, and there was
no
heed
to accumulate riches or to preach
falsehoods,
intrigue,
or
disunity. Everyone should be united.
Beings
should
give
freely to each other the things God
bestowed
upon
them.
Knowledgeanother
important
Acartian value, as
Acartians
sought
to learn about everything.
Efficiencyanother
Acartian
value, and one that guided
Acartians
on
their (and any other) overpopulated
planet.
They
had to be efficient, or they could
not meet the
heeds
of
so many beings.
Status
and
Role
Acartian
males
studied until they were eleven years
old, and then
they
worked in professions approved by
their schools. They
worked
until
they were thirty-six years old, and
then they retired.
Females
also
studied until they were eleven years
old. After this
time,
they
either married and cared for the
home, or they worked in
various
professions.
The role of females in the home was
similar to
that
of human women prior to feminism.
For example, Acorcs
wife
always made the meals without
Acorcs assistance, and it was
she
who always accompanied their
children.
Daily
Routine,
Social Etiquette/Ceremonies and
Rituals
Acartians
greeted
and left each other by placing their
hands on one
another's
shoulders.
If they knew each other well, they
extended
both
hands, one on each shoulder. If they
knew someone slightly,
only
one hand was placed on the others
shoulder. They did not
shake
each
other's hands.
Students
congregated
to take pant in parades and
celebrations for
the
Son of the Sun. These events took
place the night before
Guard
Day.
(The purpose of this was not
disclosed.) A young
Acartian
brought
a blank piece of paper to a sporting
event, and
gave
it to the Son of the Sun, who waved
it in the air, after which
symbols
appeared
on the paper.
Material
Components
of Culture
Housing
Houses
were
much like they are on Earth, but
with one important
exception:
they
had platforms attached where their
airplanes
landed.
They
needed these platforms because
airplanes were their
mode
of transportation. Houses no higher
than one hundred feet,
prefabricated,
and
composed of laminated steel. Lights
emanated
two
to three meters outward from the
walls of houses, although
there
were
no streetlights.
Transportation
Acartians
had
streets, but they did not use them
for motorized
transport.
As
the roads were only six feet wide,
Acartians used
them
for pedestrian traffic only. There
were no cars on the planet.
Acartians
traveled
in aircraft. Because transportation
occurred In
the
sky (other than pedestrians walking
on the roads), Acartian
traffic
problems
were in the air and not on the
ground. There was
also
some underground transportation in
tunnels, air travel
predominated.
Interplanet
travel
occurred on disc-shaped craft. These
spaceships
had
furniture that came out of the
walls. The ship that
took
Artur home had three levels. The
bottom level had small
ships,
weapons,
and such; the second level, which
was in the
middle,
had
dorms, storage spaces, labs, rooms,
and corridors. The
top
level had control, locomotion, and
defense systems. The ship
moved
by
means of motors that used solar
energy in conjunction
with
the magnetic push-pull of objects.
This is the same force that
moves
planets,
and, in fact, the attraction and
repulsion of forces
from
each planet and its respective sun
generated the power to
move
the ship through space. (The
neutral
zone was the area where
there
was
no such push-pull.) (See chapter
27, return Voyage. in
UFO
from
Planet Acart.) Thirty
individuals controlled the craft.
Acorc
said
they had ships floating around
Earth, but not landing on
it.
Technology
Flying
discs
were thirty to thirty-five meters
(98 to 115 feet) in
diameter
and
constructed from molds. There were
ten solar motors
that
propelled a ship in the Acartian
atmosphere. As described
above,
these
spaceships moved by magnetic waves
emitted from
planets.
The
motor produced a vibration that
created a magnetic
wave,
just
like the ones emitted by planets;
thus, one blocked,
while
the
other attracted. When something on
each side of the craft
retracted,
it
controlled aircraft speed.
Social
Stratification
Acartians
had
no social classes. The head of
government, the Son
of
the Sun, did not have a higher
status, because Acart lacked a
system
of
social stratification. The Son of
the Sun did not live in a
mansion,
and
he had the same rights and
responsibilities as
everyone
else.
The Acartians selected him as one
among them
who
would guide their destinies. Once
they selected him, the Son
[sic]
transformed
their desires into laws and their
words into
orders.
This
leader, however, could net accrue
power to benefit
themselves
[sic]
but only to have laws made for the
common
good,
(See chapter 11, A Lunch
with the Son of the Sun, in
UFO
Contact
from Planet Acart.)
Social
Institutions
Family
Acorc
Cats
family was the only family described
in the book.
Assuming
this
family lived in a normative fashion,
| inferred that
Acartian
marriages
were monogamous, as this marriage
consisted
of
only one male and one female. Also,
they seemed to have
nuclear
families
comprised of a husband, wife, and
children. For
instance,
the
Son of the Sun's family consisted of
a wife, son, and
daughter.
Religion
Acartians
were
theists because they believed in God
and
recognized
him
as creator of Earth, Acart, and all
beings. They
believed
God
created them for good. They believed
God would
not
give them things, but will delegate
a man of some intelligence
and
worth to give the necessary
knowledge. (See chapter 9, A
City
at
Night, in UFO Contact from Planet
Acart.)
As
stated previously, Acartians said
prayers before meals. These
prayers
took
place in the home but not in public
places; not because
they
were private in their devotion, but
because they were practical.
It
was too noisy in public places to
pray.
Economy
Money
did
not exist on the planet. (See
chapter
7, Going to a
Restaurant,
in
UFO Contact from Planet Acart.)
Artur discovered
this
fact when he and Acorc were at a
restaurant, He wanted to pay
for
drinks, but when he reached into his
pocket to get some money,
he
realized that all he had was
Brazilian money. He then learned
that
they did not use money on Acart. How
did their economy work
without
the
exchange of money? Acartians took
whatever they
wanted
or
needed, but nothing more. The old
did not have to work,
but
Acartians of all ages did work
because they wished to do so.
Every
year,
they took the time to travel. Males
worked until they
were
thirty years old, and then they
retired. Females often were
homemakers,
but
some worked outside the home; and
those who
did
fell under the same system as
working males.
At
one time in Acartian history, there
were many countries with
their
own
monetary systems. This system
yielded a very rich
minority
(10
percent), while the majority (90
percent) was very
poor.
This
stratification of individuals led to
many crimes
committed
by
the poor because they were
miserable. A scientist
then
invented a machine that harnessed
the power of the sun for
energy
production,
and this energy could be used as a
weapon. He
demonstrated
its
power, and then he demanded all
countries to
unite
into
one, and to abandon the use of money
and the pursuit of
profit.
All
agreed, and they asked him to govern
the new, unified
Acart.
They
called him the Man of the Sun. He
refused the
governorship,
but
offered his son in his place. His
son took the
position,
taking
the title of the Son of the Sun.
(See chapter 20,
A
Planet without Money, in UFO
Contact from Planet Acart.)
Acartians
had
farms and factories. They did not
plow their
fields,
which
produce little due to erosion.
Instead, Acartians used
stepped
terraces
for farming. They used tractors
similar to ours, but
their
engines
made no noise because they used
solar power.
Animals,
such
as buffalo with one horn, were like
cattle, providing
food,
hides
(used for fabric), and milk.
Factories
were
in mountainous regions because these
places
were
inhospitable for farming, and
because the biggest mines for
producing
solar
steel were located there. Artur went
to a factory
that
was ten kilometers (6.2 miles) long,
five hundred meters
(approximately
1,640
feet) wide, and thirty meters (98
feet) high.
The
roof was one sheet of metal that
served as a landing field for
airplanes.
There
were three lines of columns, and one
crossing in
the
middle. Conceivably, it would take
one and a half hours to
cross
the
factory on foot.
Both
machines and Acartians fashioned
metal into different
products,
such
as electric lamps, TVs, and weapons.
These
weapons,
however,
did not shoot bullets or other
ammunition;
rather,
they
emitted a strong light powered by
solar energy. Each
weapon
shot
out two hundred volts, which could
kill an Acartian.
More
powerful weapons were for
spacecraft, and they could
destroy
a
building at two to three kilometers
(about one and a half
miles).
Another
weapon, called a neutralizer,
could destroy an
object
up
to five thousand kilometers (over
3,100 miles) away. This
weapon
could
destroy human life but leave
buildings intact.
Different
products
(e.g., the skeleton of a solar ship
and solar ship
motors)
were
manufactured in different sections
of the factory.
This
indicated they utilized
specialization as an organizing
principle.
Government
As
previously mentioned, the capital of
Acart was the city of Con.
(See
chapter 26, Good-byes, in UFO
Contact from Planet Acart.)
There
was
not much information about their
governmental
structure,
but
Artur noted that if you took a
little from all the
governments
on
Earth, you'd have theirs. (See
questionnaire
section
in
UFO Contact from Planet Acart.)
The
government building was round. The
room Artur and the creatures were in
was
rounded
on
three sides and flat on the fourth.
The rounded part held
many
desks with chairs. The desks were
one behind the other in
lines,
rising
in stepped levels. There was a
six-meter-long row with
nine
of ten shoulder-high chairs near the
flat wall.
Again,
the
Son of the Sun was the head of the
government, but
he
did not receive any payment or
recognition that placed him
above
anyone
else. Consequently, he sat in the
middle and presided
over
a meeting of about five hundred
council members. They
deliberated
on
the question of permitting Arturs
return to Earth.
Some
council members thought Artur might
bring news about their
planet
back
to humans, who in turn might
threaten Acart. (See
chapter
10,
Their Government Decides, in UFO
Contact from
Planet
Acart.)
The Son of the Sun decided that
because Artur had
come
to Acart unwillingly, he should be
returned to Earth.
As
previously stated, there were no
countries on Acart. The
inhabitants
had
abolished them through mutual
consent, about a
hundred
years
after their wars ended. The entire
planet constituted
their
country.
No social stratification existed,
and everyone was
equal.
The
inhabitants of Acart were the
government. They had
elections
that
were somewhat like Earths
democracies. (See
chapter
8, Homesick and Alarmed at the
End of the Day. in UFO
Contact
from Planet Acart.) The
Acartians picked a governor
(currently,
the
'
Son of the Sun') every three years.
Recreation
Acorc
took
Artur to a recreation city near
the Acartian seacoast.
(See
chapter
19, Marine Recreation, in UFO
Contact from Planet
Acart.)
While they traveled there, they
passed over several cities.
As
they approached the recreational
city, they passed over a
building
that
was some twenty kilometers (slightly
over twelve
miles)
in
length. This building, which curved
with the shape of the
beach,
had
two floors. The first floor had
juice bars, eateries, and
changing
rooms;
the second floor had dormitories.
Artur
described
two sports played on Acart. (See
chapter
25, A
Sports
Field,
in UFO Contact from Planet Acart.)
The first sport
was
played on a field no longer than a
basketball court. The field of
artificial
grass
measured eighty by one hundred
meters (98 by 328
feet).
Balconies
and a gallery surrounded the field.
Artur and the
Son
of the Sun sat in the gallery area,
but the bleachers and
galleries
were
described equally as comfortable.
The stadium had
a
removable roof powered by solar
energy. When a bell rang,
everyone
stood
as the Son of the Sun, his family,
and a few others
entered
the
stadium.
There
was
a white line across the middle of
the field. It extended
twenty
meters
(sixty-five feet, six inches). The
Acartians then drew
another
line
ten meters back from the first line.
Another line twenty
meters
long
connected the first two lines.
Twenty males, ten on
each
side, faced one another across the
middle line. Two of them
pushed
each
other backward, and each tried to
get the other past the
line
behind the midfield line. The team
with the most members
pushed
behind
this line won.
Uniforms
identified
the teams. One team wore dark,
knee-length
pants,
and
the other wore light ones. All of
them wore parachutist-
type
boats with cleats, and shirts with
insignia's.
Each
teams members were equally matched.
This game ended
with
the score 6 to 4. The Son of the Sun
gave medallions to the
winning
team.
Also, the first player who pushed
his opponent past
the
white line received a larger
medallion.
The
second game had two goals placed at
opposite ends of the
field,
for
a distance of one hundred meters
(328 feet). There were
three
smaller
goals between them.
Teams
consisted
of thirteen members each, and squad
members
wore
light and dark pants. Four more
males were present as
arbitrators
who
coordinated and directed the game.
They seemed
to
play with a soccer-like ball, which
they kicked.
Scoring
occurred
when someone kicked the ball around
the goal,
not
into it. If the ball went around a
smaller goal, the team got one-
fifth
of
a point. If it went around a large
goal, the team received
two-fifths
of
a point. If the ball circumvented a
large goal two
consecutive
times,
the team earned 2.5 fifths each
time. The
winning
team
scored 10 four-fifths points, while
the losers scored
10
one-fifth points.
Social
Problems
Overpopulation
With
ninety million beings living in an
Acartian city, it was not
hard
to imagine the predominant social
problem on their planet was
overpopulation.
In
fact, because of this social
problem, Acartians
came
to Earth. They did not plan to
invade Earth. They merely
planned
to
colonize it, after humans killed
themselves in a
worldwide
nuclear
war.
War
There
was
no war on Acart, although there had
been a nuclear one.
They
had two weapons: a solar
disintegrator and a solar
neutralizer.
They
used the first in war, and the
second in medicine and farming.
They
had gone through their own nuclear
age, and they had
developed
technology
(i.e., solar neutralizer) to deal
with radiation.
The
solar neutralizer would be used to
cleanse Earth from radiation
caused
by
nuclear war. Acartians would then
repopulate the Earth.
They
had their own weapons, but they were
not guns. They were
more
like flashlights that hung from the
belt of those in positions of
authority.
Poverty
As
mentioned, this social problem once
existed on Acart, at the
lime
when they had a stratified society
with the rich on top and the
poor
on lower levels. The pursuit of
profit created a poorer class.
When
they abandoned stratification,
poverty ended. Now everyone
pursued
what
he or she wanted and needed. All
desired to do the
necessary
work
to keep such a system afloat.
Crime
During
the
time when they had countries with
rich and poor (i.e.,
when
they were socially stratified),
Acartians had crime, which
they
acknowledged.?? The poor committed
crimes but were not
placed
in
jail. They worked just like everyone
else, but were denied
the
rights of other Acartians. These
individuals could not go into
public
places
or travel to other cities.
Social
Change
Acart
went
through two major social changes.
First, they shifted
from
nation-states to a universal,
planetary government. They did
this
after they nearly annihilated
themselves in a nuclear war. As
described,
a
scientist, the so-called Man of the
Sun, developed
technology
that
controlled their suns energy.
Acartians conceded
to
the Man of the Sun's demand to unite
into one planetary society.
They
did this when they saw they could be
destroyed.
The
second social change concerned
stratification. Again, as
previously
stated,
there had been rich and poor strata
on Acart, but
this
led to a population distribution
where 90 percent were poor
and
10 percent were rich. The extent of
this inequality led to an
increased
rate
of crime, which threatened their
society. Thus,
Acartians
decided
to abandon stratification, and, with
it, the pursuit
of
profit. Now everyone worked, and
each received whatever they
wanted
and
needed, but not to excess. Knowing
how well their
system
functioned
provided them with an incentive to
continue.
Conclusion
Acartian
society
was surely a community in social
organization,
which
is
because of its high degree of
organization and complexity.
For
instance, their governmental
structure evolved from a nation-
state
model
to a universal, planetary form.
Their technology was
complex.
For
example, they developed
transportation systems that
enabled
them
to visit distant planets (e.g.,
Earth). They harnessed
solar
energy
for farming and medicine, as well as
for weaponry.
Moreover,
they
also had a complicated system for
daily air travel,
more
complex than any road system we have
on Earth.
Additionally,
they
had a retractable roof on their
sports stadium,
artificial
grass
in their sports complex, TV screens
on walls for
telephone
calls (e.g.. the one on which
Acorc saw his wife), and
cell-like
telephones
(e.g., the one on which Acorc
called his friend,
Tuec).78
They
did seem to have traditional social
forms (by earthly
standards),
despite
their sophisticated technology.
Although
females
worked
outside of the home, their behaviors
at home
seemed
traditional.
They made meals and raised children
without
the
help of male spouses, for instance.
The
Acartian society seemed to be
socialistic, rather than
capitalistic,
for
it focused on the common good, not
on individual
self-interest.
For
instance, they had no money for
buying and
selling,
If
they needed or wanted something,
they simply went to a
factory
and
got it. No one took anything in
excess.
The
Acartian diagram-for-social-living
underwent a huge social
change
as
it dealt with three enormous
problems-in-social-living:
(1)
the pursuit of profit produced an
imbalance in wealth, and this
inequality
fostered
an increase in their crime rate as
the poor dealt
with
their misery;
(2) they had a large overpopulation
problem; and
(3)
they barely survived a planetary
nuclear war.
Where
10
percent of the Acartian population
had been rich, 90
percent
had
been poor. This imbalance created a
latent function of
developing
a
large increase in their crime rates.
Acartians decided
to
eliminate stratification in order to
deal with this social problem.
Consequently,
everyone
resided on the same social strata
and
possessed
the
same standard of living. (For
example, when the Son
of
the Sun showed up at the sports
stadium, he and his entourage
sat
in the same seats as every other
spectator.) Thus, they moved
from
a system of stratification to an
equalitarian society. Inequality,
or
discrimination, gave way to equality
as a social value.
Second,
their
global population exploded. This
social problem
had
the latent function of driving their
space program. They
explored
distant
planets in the hope of finding
habitable places to
resettle
their
burgeoning population.
Third,
their
nuclear war inspired a scientist
(the Man of the Sun)
to
invent technology that eliminated
future nuclear wars. The solar
neutralizer
and
solar disintegrator persuaded
leaders of Acartian
countries
to
abandon their nation-states for a
universal planetary
government.
As
members of the same society, war
became
obsolete.
Finally,
the
portrait of planet Acart as
described by Artur Berlet
and
Wendelle C. Stevens demonstrated a
place where technological!
advancement
soared
ahead of social development.
Spacecraft
traveled
millions
of miles, landed on Earth, and were
not detected
due
to its stealth technology. This
technology, however, was far
ahead
of
their husband-and-wife marital roles
and their
Monogamous
marriage
form. Perhaps Acartians, like
humans,
experience
culture
lag; that is, their technology moved
ahead of
their
social
arrangements. In fact, the social
organization of their
marriages
and
families appear to be more like
Ozzie and Harriet of
the
1950s than the futuristic Star Trek.
Acorc went to work, and his
wife stayed home with their
children.
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