20 Sep 07
2 edits
The post that was quoted here has been removedIts getting very difficult to tie what I've just said into what you respond with.
1. Modern Life is rubbish.
Tell me einstein. Did civilisation start 200 years ago? Are their really factories and machinery amongst the undiscovered tribes of the Amazons? I didn't realise your thinking was so closed that pre-civilisation meant the Industrial Revolution to you? If you think that the Industrial Revolution is prehistory, then I'd like to recommend you read a history book, any history book.
2.
Where did you come up with the idea that I had issues with America from my previous post? Because I posted about Starbucks? Come on, you're being disingenious. I could have said Debenhams, TopShop or any other of the trite chainstores which mark us as civilised.
3.
Schools teach us many good things. We also learn to pick on the different in school. And that we need to have the latest clothes/games/shoes or we're crap. We learn to show our individuality dressing the same and acting the same as our friends.
Colleges are more of the same, although at least we learn about independence.
The 3rd biggest killer in America (not an attack on America, it's just they're better at collecting and publishing stats than most other countries) after heart disease and cancer is medical error/fatal reaction to drugs administered. Yup, that's great. "Hey, my kid has been watching TV 10 hours a day since birth. He has serious attention problems. You recommend drugging him to the gills? Will he still be able to watch TV? Perfect."
Architecture? Tell me, historically, who built the greatest architecture? The Romans? The Greeks? All on the back of murder and slavery. Great. Lets pay homage to the murderers and the rapers.
Airports? Wow. We cna now go to the other end of the world to look at some mountains. Sure, there may be mountains at the bottom of my lawn, but are they a million miles away? No? Boring!
Sure, I can see the positives, but are they really THAT brilliant that you can justify inter-species genocide because of our superiority?
4. Humans are superior to other animals?
I don't get you. We build airports so that we can fly while using up huge quantities of natural resources. A bird can fly naturally. We build trains/cars so we can travel at 40kph and more. A cheetah can naturally do that? We design subs so we can swim underwater, how many species can do this already?
Termites create termite cities. Whales/dolphins can talk/use sonar.
We are playing catch up on so many other species, and yet you maintain we're brilliant because we can catch up? You also think that we shouldn't be interested in saving some as yet undiscovered species? Who's to say what us "superior" humans might be able to learn from them?
5. Society is perfect.
Please don't accuse me of not reading what you have written when you obviously don't read what I have written. Reread my post and quote where i said you thought society was perfefct.
Very rarely in your posts have you addressed specific points I've made. It seems you prefer to splodge together a viewpoint for me, from the individual points I've made, and address that viewpoint generally. I guess it makes your life a lot easier. Specifically, I'd like you to comment on the part of my post which you quoted above, but chose to completely ignore.
D
20 Sep 07
1 edit
Originally posted by RagnorakDedicated to Rags and all who believe pre-civilizational harmony is anything more than pure propaganda and myth:
1. Modern Life is rubbish.
Tell me einstein. Did civilisation start 200 years ago? Are their really factories and machinery amongst the undiscovered tribes of the Amazons? I didn't realise your thinking was so closed that pre-civilisation meant the Industrial Revolution to you? If you think that the Industrial Revolution is prehistory, then I'd like to recommend you read a history book, any history book.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/163
20 Sep 07
The post that was quoted here has been removedhttp://www.yourmedicaldetective.com/public/335.cfm
I never said that I was going to live in a hole in the ground.
This debate stemmed from your attitude that we should leave Gorillas to go extinct because children of a superior species are hungry. Then you claimed that genocide and specicide is not only a part of, but a necessary part of this great civilisation which you adore.
You still haven't managed to tell me why humans are superior to all other species, nor have you even quantified this superiority. I merely pointed out areas where we were inferior and playing catch up.
Thanks again for not addressing my points. I'll remember from now on that you don't have the maturity to carry out a semi-heated debate.
It's been "fun".
D
20 Sep 07
Originally posted by RagnorakWhy are humans superior?
http://www.yourmedicaldetective.com/public/335.cfm
I never said that I was going to live in a hole in the ground.
This debate stemmed from your attitude that we should leave Gorillas to go extinct because children of a superior species are hungry. Then you claimed that genocide and specicide is not only a part of, but a necessary part of this great ...[text shortened]... at you don't have the maturity to carry out a semi-heated debate.
It's been "fun".
D
Because of our minds, because of what they have created and continue to create. That's fantastic that birds can fly and cheetahs can do 40 kmh, and dolphins can swim, but humans can do all those things and better, far, far better. Sit your cat in front of your keyboard and see what he comes up with, then tell your cat to make a keyboard. If you can''t see all the great wealth available to us, from the tiny ball in the nib of your pen to the house you live in, to what that house is connected to - water systems, power systems. Like Catfoodtim I also read in your posts that you some how favoured going back, that you wouldn't like to jump on a plane and travel to a different country and experience new things, what dumb beast can achieve 1/100 000 000 000 000th of what humans have acheived.
27 Sep 07
Originally posted by WajomaI think Rag can fully appreciate the advantages that humans have over animals, but he probably isn't arrogant enough to believe it makes him 'superior', that's all.
Why are humans superior?
Because of our minds, because of what they have created and continue to create. That's fantastic that birds can fly and cheetahs can do 40 kmh, and dolphins can swim, but humans can do all those things and better, far, far better. Sit your cat in front of your keyboard and see what he comes up with, then tell your cat to make a key ...[text shortened]... ew things, what dumb beast can achieve 1/100 000 000 000 000th of what humans have acheived.
28 Sep 07
Originally posted by RagnorakIt provides strong evidence that modern day society is the least violent in history and the trend is to continue the decrease in violence.
What is that supposed to prove?
D
It means that the doom-sayers that claim that modern society is rubbish fail to put things in a historical perspective. There is obviously an immense room for improvement, but it is clear that the backtracking that some seem to advocate is pure delusion.
28 Sep 07
Originally posted by PalynkaMy point isn't that we need to backtrack to caveman behaviour. It's just that we shouldn't dismiss it as totally inferior, considering they managed to live on the planet for hundreds of thousands of years, in relative harmony.
It means that the doom-sayers that claim that modern society is rubbish fail to put things in a historical perspective. There is obviously an immense room for improvement, but it is clear that the backtracking that some seem to advocate is pure delusion.
I prefer to learn from all past experiences. I don't believe the widely propogated meme that our current way of living is the best there ever has been.
I'd also be interested in your opinion on why the first thing we do when we meet "inferior" tribal people is try to convert them to our way of life, and failing that, we wipe them out.
D
28 Sep 07
1 edit
Originally posted by PalynkaWhat does "pre-civilizational" mean?
Dedicated to Rags and all who believe pre-civilizational harmony is anything more than pure propaganda and myth:
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/163
Perhaps the video shows that civilization is becoming less violent, unless you consider mediaeval Italy, for example, to have been uncivilized.