Are humans getting more pathetic in the western world?

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Our ancestors had to deal with predators, starvation, infections, brutal weaponless combat, malnutrition, and who knows what else in order to get to us now. And for what? So we can all pamper ourselves with useless things, shut ourselves away in our cosy secure homes, take a pill for any ailment we may happen to get, overcleanse our surroundings so that a tiny bit of dirt will horrify us, and throw away food simply because its reached its sell by date.

Our government is arresting people for making negative comments on websites like twitter or facebook. It is as though everyone is deemed too precious to tolerate even a harsh remark nowadays.

I often wonder if our ancestors came to this day and age in the west and observed us, would they be impressed or would they think we are pathetic?

Anyone know what I mean?

Its because the majority of the population of the western world like to close their eyes to reality and like to stay sheltered because they are afraid of the truth out there.

Or they are too naive to know it exists.

Apparently Ignorance is bliss. Ahh the good ole USA.

It certainly seems that as human society has become more and more organised that something has been lost. Granted people are happy with their full bellies, warm shelters, advanced health care and more or less predator free environment but at what cost? Is the required degree of conformity too severe? People are increasingly having more mental problems and cardiovascular problems due to work related stress and the need to conform to the requirements that today's society imposes on them. We are less like our ancestors and becoming more like ants or bees with specific roles allocated to us for the duration of our lives or until the workplace no longer wants us due to our age then we are left to fester and die on the outskirts of the hive. Children in some parts of the world such as Japan are committing suicide due to the overwhelming intensive education requirements imposed on them... conform and fit society or die.

On the other hand, would i really want to return to a more 'wholesome' time when only the richest could read and write, life threatening communicable illnesses were endemic, poor children were put in work houses, men worked over 10 hours a day, 6 days a week for virtually nothing and women 'knew their place'?

No.

It is fear that makes us pathetic. We crave security, and we fight for more legislation, more safety, more protection, because we're terrified of the world around us. And why would we not be? Everything is deadly. Everything is out to get us. How lucky we are that these nice media types are keeping us informed about all this stuff, and that the government is working so hard for the people. It's a big relief all round that massive multi-national corporations are keeping costs down and making sure we have all the gadgets and pleasures we want.

I think the OP was referring to a much earlier time? I'm thinking pre-history. I can't help thinking my life would have been happier (albeit much shorter) if my name was Ugg and I lived in a cave and I'd got a bow and arrows and was hunting woolly mammoths!

Well....yes. I think they endured those things with an eye towards making life eventually easier. The whole of human history has been an attempt to re-make the world into one that is more amenable to an easier life. People figured out how to cultivate plants, domesticate animals and create useful objects so that they wouldn't have to die young from predators, starvation and so on. They wouldn't have been able to envision this specifically, but they did everything in their power every step of the way to get to where we are now. There have been a lot of unintended consequences, as Tallyman notes. Nobody knew when plants were first cultivated that such a thing as junk food would come into existence and nobody knew when healing herbs were first discovered that this would eventually lead to "a pill for every ill". But they started us on this road with every intention to go towards an easier life.




A government in a western country has arrested people for negative twitter or facebook comments? I need to see a link to a newspaper article before I'll believe that.



I think "impressed" is too weak a word for how they would feel. The sheer scale of our architecture, crowding, and noise and other sensory stimuli would overwhelm them to a point probably far beyond what even a person with severe sensory sensitivities would experience. If they ever reached a point where they could assimilate the sheer quantity of sensory info I think they would be able to scale their overwhelm down to "impressed". After all, you have to grow up in a society to really understand its' crushing aspects such as academic, social or work stress. From an outsider's view, what you see is the gigantic amount of food, (but you don't see the type 2 diabetes) and the sheer scale of architecture (but you don't see what it does to a person to be a cubicle drone). They might enjoy it far more than we do, especially the food, which we take for granted and aren't impressed by.

We've somehow arrived at a point where we have a colossal failure of good leadership and an absence of Wisdom. I would be suprised if our leaders had any creative skills in Art or Writing. I mean sure Bill Clinton could play a saxophone, but I'd be surprised if he could write a good original song.

People are quite smart and even clever to a point, but real thoughtfulness and innovation are rare traits. In fact, I think introspection and careful consideration before taking action are dismissed by a fast paced culture that seems to put more value on spontaneity.

I guess where I'm going with this is the Western mind is very shallow in many different ways. It lacks depth and contemplation which could lead to cultivating wise thinking. There are of course exceptions such as very individualist and independent thinking people. That might stay that way if Public School doesn't smother them.

Ugh. That would be far far far worse, a primeval 'might is right' society devoid of any civility or culture where you could have your skull clubbed apart for being in the wrong clan, at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Not my cup of tea. Besides, I love my gadgets too much. I'm glad I was born into the dying decades of the 2nd millenium. If anything, I wish I could have come along later, once they'd worked out things like commercial tourism to Mars, total immersive virtual reality and flying cars.

True, today is far from peaceful but at least for the most part you can keep the barbarism at arm's length.

Last edited by thomas81 on 26 Sep 2012, 6:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.

The Western world is going to hell in a hand basket and seem to be copying a lot of those Eastern dictatorships they supposedly despise more and more.

I think the difference is, the barbarism of the united states and Europe is far more subtle.

Think Guantanamo Bay style torture and golden handshakes behind closed doors with shady figures.

Not really. If the ancients could see us they would think we were wizards.

After all we throw lightning bolts, we shoot fire through the air and we have flying carpets.

ruveyn

No. "Eastern" Societies are just the same, see the totalitarian mini-shithole that Singapore is. Also, South Korea to a lesser extent and depending on your opinion, Japan.

P.S. in the 'past' in the UK, there were many myriad social rituals which worked to provide a modicrum or respect and to prevent offense - due to many people living in a small area (Japan was similar in that aspect). The United States had "fighting words" as a doctrine as a limit on free speech.

Sometimes it seems like it's just a case where direct barbarism has been replaced with one that is more indirect.