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But all of us have been in situations where we say to ourselves: "this is event E going to force us to confront with X, Y, Z" only to see E go by and people exh
by YZF 13y ago
But all of us have been in situations where we say to ourselves: "this is event E going to force us to confront with X, Y, Z" only to see E go by and people exhibiting cognitive dissonance. It's not hard to imagine very significant transformations of our environment with people still refusing to accept responsibility and adjust our course of action. Dr. Harari makes the argument that our lives as hunters-gatherers was in many respects much better than our lives post the agricultural revolution. For us in the middle/upper class of the world's population this is maybe untrue but we aren't representative of the entire world's population.
- jonnathanson 13y agoIt may have been true that our lives as hunter-gatherers were better in many respects. But the problem is that civilization inevitably defeated hunting and gathering. And it always tends to, throughout the course of human history. Major technological advancement seems inevitably to outcompete the alternatives. While that advancement may or may not produce better outcomes, it always wins out. (For poignant examples, see: "Guns, Germs & Steel," "Why the West Rules (For Now)," and other large-scale historical analyses of this topic). This doesn't mean Dr. Harari's point is invalid, but it may mean that the point is moot in praxis. We can't return to a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, so the only practical alternative is to continue on the technology treadmill, even if it diminishes quality of life in various ways. Over the last 30,000+ years, we don't seem to have found a way around this issue.