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Interesting tech and all, but ultimately efforts like this are a waste. If we humans could instead get over our self-perceived need to engage in warfare for chi

Interesting tech and all, but ultimately efforts like this are a waste. If we humans could instead get over our self-perceived need to engage in warfare for childish reasons then we could dedicate such efforts to more productive things like helping homeless people get housing and skills, or developing better psychological sciences to help drug addicts get free from their disease of addiction, you name it > O SON OF SPIRIT! The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before thine eyes. > > ~ Baha'i Teaching

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CamperBob2 2y ago
It would be great if we could all share that sentiment. But ask the Ukrainians how unilateral disarmament worked out for them. Unfortunately, it seems that this particular waste of resources and intellect is still necessary.
- spoonfeeder006 2y ago
  Sorry, I don't mean anything against legitimate self defense, I'm talking rather about "self-perceived need to engage in warfare for childish reasons" Examples of that would include ego, greed, petty revenge, etc... But I guess the way I said it did come across that way, so yeah, my bad I'm just saying that if we could evolve past such petty ego-based sentiments in the world, then wouldn't such pressure to develop weaponry in such massive amounts, and hence we could focus on actually making a functioning society
  - shiroiushi 2y ago
    >I'm just saying that if we could evolve past such petty ego-based sentiments in the world That would be nice, but it seems that would make people no longer human. Happily following a petty ego-based Dear Leader's orders into warfare seems to be the norm for much of the human population, looking at history, so this tendency appears to be deeply-rooted into the human psyche.
    - lloeki 2y ago
      Not just humans, apes at large. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gombe_Chimpanzee_War https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gombe_Chimpanzee_War Cue the opening scene of 2001 A Space Odyssey.
    - em-bee 2y ago
      why? the majority of humans are peaceful and friendly. the problem is that we have been raised to follow leaders instead of thinking for ourselves. that is what needs to change. when people learn to think for themselves then we won't have that problem anymore. as the quote above says: thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor it all comes down to better education, specifically moral education, and learning to critically evaluate any information we get. if people blindly follow a leader, then this is exactly what they are missing.
      - CamperBob2 2y ago
        So, the problem with that is that not everybody is equally good at "thinking for themselves." A sufficiently-large group of people will always divide itself, as inevitably as if Maxwell's Demon himself were prodding them, into subsets of people who can be easily herded and people who can't be. By the same token there will always be a small minority, drawn from both subsets, who are unusually good at doing the herding. Everything that goes wrong later can be traced to that inequality. Things that go right can usually be traced back to it as well. Any faith or philosophy that doesn't begin with an understanding of that aspect of human nature is a waste of time at best. Thank you for coming to my TED talk.
- spoonfeeder006 2y ago
  > O rulers of the earth! Be reconciled among yourselves, that ye may need no more armaments save in a measure to safeguard your territories and dominions. Beware lest ye disregard the counsel of the All-Knowing, the Faithful. > Be united, O kings of the earth, for thereby will the tempest of discord be stilled amongst you, and your peoples find rest, if ye be of them that comprehend. Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice. > (“Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh”, pp. 253-254)

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CamperBob2 2y ago

It would be great if we could all share that sentiment. But ask the Ukrainians how unilateral disarmament worked out for them. Unfortunately, it seems that this particular waste of resources and intellect is still necessary.

spoonfeeder006 2y ago
Sorry, I don't mean anything against legitimate self defense, I'm talking rather about "self-perceived need to engage in warfare for childish reasons" Examples of that would include ego, greed, petty revenge, etc... But I guess the way I said it did come across that way, so yeah, my bad I'm just saying that if we could evolve past such petty ego-based sentiments in the world, then wouldn't such pressure to develop weaponry in such massive amounts, and hence we could focus on actually making a functioning society
- shiroiushi 2y ago
  >I'm just saying that if we could evolve past such petty ego-based sentiments in the world That would be nice, but it seems that would make people no longer human. Happily following a petty ego-based Dear Leader's orders into warfare seems to be the norm for much of the human population, looking at history, so this tendency appears to be deeply-rooted into the human psyche.
  - lloeki 2y ago
    Not just humans, apes at large. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gombe_Chimpanzee_War https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gombe_Chimpanzee_War Cue the opening scene of 2001 A Space Odyssey.
  - em-bee 2y ago
    why? the majority of humans are peaceful and friendly. the problem is that we have been raised to follow leaders instead of thinking for ourselves. that is what needs to change. when people learn to think for themselves then we won't have that problem anymore. as the quote above says: thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor it all comes down to better education, specifically moral education, and learning to critically evaluate any information we get. if people blindly follow a leader, then this is exactly what they are missing.
    - CamperBob2 2y ago
      So, the problem with that is that not everybody is equally good at "thinking for themselves." A sufficiently-large group of people will always divide itself, as inevitably as if Maxwell's Demon himself were prodding them, into subsets of people who can be easily herded and people who can't be. By the same token there will always be a small minority, drawn from both subsets, who are unusually good at doing the herding. Everything that goes wrong later can be traced to that inequality. Things that go right can usually be traced back to it as well. Any faith or philosophy that doesn't begin with an understanding of that aspect of human nature is a waste of time at best. Thank you for coming to my TED talk.
spoonfeeder006 2y ago
> O rulers of the earth! Be reconciled among yourselves, that ye may need no more armaments save in a measure to safeguard your territories and dominions. Beware lest ye disregard the counsel of the All-Knowing, the Faithful. > Be united, O kings of the earth, for thereby will the tempest of discord be stilled amongst you, and your peoples find rest, if ye be of them that comprehend. Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice. > (“Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh”, pp. 253-254)