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> So I guess I'm looking for some specific examples of where we've actually consciously, as a collective society, altered the course of technological progress f
by overfeed 5mo ago
> So I guess I'm looking for some specific examples of where we've actually consciously, as a collective society, altered the course of technological progress for the greater good, because I honestly can't think of any.
Firearms and explosives are not abused nearly as much as one would have imagined before their invention (or soon after). I don't think it's because we stunted the explosives tech-tree, but the social contract and general stability have kept large-scale antisocial behaviors at bay.
- sdellis 5mo agoI think the 22 million people who died in World War I, for reasons there is no consensus on, would contest your claim. And that is just a fraction of a fraction of all humans, with their own stories and dreams and loved ones, who have died (and continue to die) in vain to firearms and explosives.
- jjfoooo4 5mo agoBut there's not an everyday use case for firearms and explosives for the average person. There's civilian, everyday task that would be easier were better firearms and explosives available
- forshaper 5mo agoWhat used to be the average person was different.
- overfeed 5mo ago> But there's not an everyday use case for firearms and explosives for the average person I see you don't have any hunting enthusiasts in your social circles. Fireworks are explosives. If your point was to suggest that regular people don't have access to firearms and explosives, then I'd have to vehemently disagree.
- cjalmeida 5mo agoOne could argue the death toll of WW I and WW II would not be possible without large scale manufacturing of firearms and explosives.