Our place in History

[Doom Shepherd]

We might engineer our own successors. A guy named Dougal Dixon wrote a book called "Man after Man," in which future scientists engineer humans to work in space (even in a vacuum), and they go on to colonize the cosmos as a successor species to man.

 

They also engineer humans to fill ecological niches abandoned by animals who the humans drove extinct. Eventually, "Prime" man goes extinct, and the engineered "aftermen" evolve on their own.

 

It's kinda creepy, but interesting, if you can find a copy.

[beefman62]

If someone looked back on us now i really feel like there would be disgust. We rely on something that is a nonrenewable resource. we take more time and research in weapons than space travel. were destroying the earth and with no way off it we are condemning future generations to a husk of a planet. Now we look at the dark ages and see how people got nowhere for 500 years. Its going to be the same if we do not get our shit together and think ahead for once.

[Bjossi]

Speaking of lack of progress, some nutjob priest in the US burned Islam's holy book and Muslim(?) extremists killed 30 people and injured over a hundred as a response, many of them being people from the United Nations on a mission to help out.

 

What are people hoping to accomplish with violence and childish provoking? Certainly not solving problems or reaching peaceful agreements (to disagree).

[Lord Sinister]

If asked their reasoning, I'm pretty sure it would generally be along the lines of that they were doing it to demonstrate their loyalty to their God.

[beefman62]

If asked their reasoning, I'm pretty sure it would generally be along the lines of that they were doing it to demonstrate their loyalty to their God.

 

Im not so sure about that, Moslem's believe in an eye for an eye. It is in there religion and they really enforce it, its like having Muhammads name said requires revenge. a author talked about muhammad in a book of his and a bunch of extremists hunted him down and killed him. showes showed him and the people that made it got numerous death threats. Its the religion that is motivating them to do such horrid things.

[mysteryliner]

If asked their reasoning, I'm pretty sure it would generally be along the lines of that they were doing it to demonstrate their loyalty to their God.

 

They probably are, and by doing so they are keep feeding on the vicious circle of religious violence.

 

Strange actually that although humans are (supposed to be) the most intelligent animals, they still believe in religion.

 

I mean think about it...

How big of an ego do we have to believe that:

There is a supreme being out there that created heaven and earth, the entire cosmos just for us

http://uploads.ungrounded.net/525000/525347_scale_of_universe_ng.swf

That everything on this earth is there just for us, plants, trees, animals...

ALL For Us !!!

[BTGBullseye]

Strange actually that although humans are (supposed to be) the most intelligent animals, they still believe in religion.

 

I mean think about it...

How big of an ego do we have to believe that:

There is a supreme being out there that created heaven and earth, the entire cosmos just for us

http://uploads.ungrounded.net/525000/525347_scale_of_universe_ng.swf

That everything on this earth is there just for us, plants, trees, animals...

ALL For Us !!!

This is usually taken as an insult to all religions.

 

Insults are based on perception... More often than not, what is taken as an insult isn't meant as one until some idiot takes offense.

[Lord Sinister]

http://uploads.ungrounded.net/525000/525347_scale_of_universe_ng.swf

 

Ah yes, I remember seeing that a while ago. It's great.

 

 

Anyway, in my opinion it's impossible to rule out the existence of a God just as it is impossible to prove the existence of a God, for now anyway.

[mysteryliner]

@Lord Sinister

@1: Yes, and in religion usually when that idiot takes offense people die!

( the Crusades, Thirty Years War, Taiping Rebellion, jihad)

 

@2:

Well that's the entirely point. The point is if there is no evidence for something it's not rational to believe in it.

 

John believes aliens are out to get him, and he acts on those believes (wraps himself in tin foil, etc)

He is put into a mental hospital, this guy is nuts!!!

 

But, if enough people wrap themselves in tin foil and start screaming "they are coming", "they are among us"... The it is called (mass hysteria) "sorry", religion.

 

Or would you call someone believing pyramids were made by Aliens, a belief for which there is no evidence, a rational belief?

Or

If I would believe those aliens are the Combine and the pyRamids are are leftover relics of the first occupation of earth... A rational belief?

[Lord Sinister]

With the latter points, it depends on the evidence available, otherwise it is just superstition. The evidence for a fair few of these religions seems to be things such as Holy books that are many years old, their origins unknown. This mystery is what adds some weight to Religious individuals advocating their own as truth. However I highly doubt that a lot of people are 'truly' following their own religion correctly. The Bible for example advocates I believe, 'Thou Shalt Not Kill'. Yet the Crusades and whatnot clearly defied this commandment. I am far from an expert on religion however.

[mysteryliner]

Yes but those book were written in times were people we less intelligent.

They didn't investigate the signs, they could not comprehend the things they had seen and concluded it could only be the work of something that supersedes them.

Example: thunder, lightning. Such an amazingly powerful force of nature.

We have the tools to study and to some point, understand these forces but there was a time where we did not and we believed it was a sign af god being angry with us.

 

They break more commandments then just the one not to kill.

Shall not take the name of the lord in vain

Shall not commit adultery

Shall not bear false witness.........

 

And nor am I an expert, it's just interesting to discuss about these things sometimes

[Lord Sinister]

I was just using Thou Shalt Not Kill as an example, I cannot remember all the commandments off the top of my head.

 

In truth though, quite a few of the ten commandments are a good guide to how to live your life by (don't murder people and so on). It's common sense, but it also provides some people with a reason why they should be 'the good citizen'; to show that they have faith.

[BTGBullseye]

the Crusades

You really need to re-check your history about what happened during the crusades, what started them, and who and what started the killing...

 

"Thou shat not kill." Is often taken to mean "Don't ever kill anybody for any reason", however that is not the way that the Catholic church, or any other Christian church that I know of interprets it. The Catholic church, so far as I've found, does not consider it a sin if you are defending someone. (including yourself, someone that will be killed in the future, etc.)

[mysteryliner]

Roman Catholic Europe trying to recapture the Holy land from muslims... that crusade???

[mysteryliner]

stupid and provoking of him, on the other hand 30 dead people for a $10 book on e-bay..... Sad!

[Blue]

the Crusades

You really need to re-check your history about what happened during the crusades, what started them, and who and what started the killing...

 

"Thou shat not kill." Is often taken to mean "Don't ever kill anybody for any reason", however that is not the way that the Catholic church, or any other Christian church that I know of interprets it. The Catholic church, so far as I've found, does not consider it a sin if you are defending someone. (including yourself, someone that will be killed in the future, etc.)

You state that like a fact when in actuality it's a generalization at best- I would call it conjecture as well as a personal opinion.

[Doom Shepherd]

Speaking of lack of progress, some nutjob priest in the US burned Islam's holy book and Muslim(?) extremists killed 30 people and injured over a hundred as a response, many of them being people from the United Nations on a mission to help out.

 

What are people hoping to accomplish with violence and childish provoking? Certainly not solving problems or reaching peaceful agreements (to disagree).

That was all over NPR. He's lucky he didn't leave his hillbilly state, or he would've got his ass beat by the angry hippies.

 

I personally despise the guy (He burned a book!), but I think the reaction kinda proved his point.

 

Anybody remember when some photographer took a crucifix, put it in a bucket of his own pee, then exhibited the photos AND got an NEA grant for it? Or the other artist who made a Virgin Mary out of poop?

 

Christians got all pissed off, but nobody died.

 

It's also a bit hypocritical, given that Saudi Arabia shreds Bibles.

 

(Not that any of this was recalled by any of the media outlets I heard discussing the story...one wonders why...)

[Attilio]

Our place in history? Let me think a bit:

 

Our place in history as 20th century mankind? Well with 2 world wars I guess we cannot be too proud of ourselves... We have had some extremely beutiful accomplishments, but thinking about 20th centruy I guess future people will most likely remember the world wars, the atom bomb, the cold war. [FAIL]

 

Our place in history as early 21st century mandkin? Global warming, starving 3rd world vs. Western societies. I guess we cannot be too proud based upon this view either. [FAIL]

 

Our place in history as e-humanity? Well if mankind manages to survive, and starts to use renewable energy and tackles the overpopulation I guess the future generations will remember us as the people who have seen the rise of the Internet. Again of course only if Internet survives due to sustainable development. [JUDGEMENT POSTPONED]

 

Based on what might future generations judge us? Art? Buildings? Inventions? Sports? Religion? Ideologies?

[mysteryliner]

@attilio: exactly, but what seems very bad to me is the nuclear story.

As stated before, Although wars are horrible, they happened all throughout history and they do not have a long term effect.

With nuclear accidents and waste, we are now inflicting damage on humans, animals, etc. Over a timespan from when we started walking on our hind legs up to present time.

[Attilio]

@attilio: exactly, but what seems very bad to me is the nuclear story.

As stated before, Although wars are horrible, they happened all throughout history and they do not have a long term effect.

With nuclear accidents and waste, we are now inflicting damage on humans, animals, etc. Over a timespan from when we started walking on our hind legs up to present time.

 

Again it also makes me think if we are actually worse that our preedessors:

 

1.Deforestation

The mediaval Spanish have cut their trees to have more space for sheeps. Spain's clomate has turnes drier

The English forest are far gone too.

North Africa during the Roman Empire became dry much quicker, because humanity changed the environment to raise more crops.

 

2.Industrial revolution:

We have been using coal for machinery for 4 centuries. Not to mention all the other materials.

 

3.Importing animals and crops and their effect:

I guess a few Australian could tell stories about rabbits. Those beasts have caused extinctions, because it had no natural foes in the southern contitent. Also the same happen with bees not far away from there, and there are more examples.

 

Of course it does not give us the rights to commit the same mistakes again, but it seems mankind never lears from History. Have we all slept durng history lessons?