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My opinion is probably as invalid as the author's or most anyone else's... but I can't let a couple things just sit. Just because some closely related primates

by pistle 11y ago

My opinion is probably as invalid as the author's or most anyone else's... but I can't let a couple things just sit. Just because some closely related primates display something we can interpret as war doesn't mean you can then assume there is some related, unavoidable instinct in homo sapiens. This is a poor argument that highlights the author's own bastardized interpretation of evolution. It's 2015 and those are chimps, in 2015. We are not chimps. This line of argument is very weak. Overall, his self-consciousness is barely containable and I'm having trouble being objective based on this. It sounds like intelligent people tell him he's wrong, but he's got the facts and the platform, so he's right. He can't strongly defend his ideas. He just likes to say everyone on the right and left is crazy, absurd, and/or wrong - obviously. But there's no follow-through. He knows. He was there, and he's telling you. He's read something about chimps and has an opinion about innate differences and their implications for society. This echoes personalities I've known who self-affirm from exactly the lack of external affirmation they seek. He seeks to define the boundaries of the discussion to suit his conclusion, then accuses others of not being able to have an honest discussion if they wouldn't agree to it since they argue that it is no space for an insightful discussion. Catch-a 22. Why is there no mention of the incentives for the 14%+ of women in the US military? That's a big enough number to do a study to see how many of them are trying to find "manhood" and compare it to the boys. They should have a question in the discharge process: "Did you find manhood during your service?" As an aside, I'd be interested to see an Ask HN: "How many people have you killed on the field of battle?"

didibus 11y ago
I agree, too much of this is hyper contextual. Given America, given young men, given the current socio-political context, given the current economy, etc. Why do those young men in that exact context decide to go. All of it seems mostly anecdotal interpretation. It's all as accurate as a grandmother's remedy for the cold.
vacri 11y ago
I'm glad you said this; I feel much the same way. There's all sorts of fallacies and pop culture theories throughout the article, though the author is a competant writer. One of the ones that really bothered me was the assertion that we should be respectful of the decisions that these young men make - despite the decisions of young adults rarely being taken seriously by society, regardless of the context. As for 'men are clearly wired for war', well, no they're not. As a demographic, they have to be trained hard to take a life (in person at least). Plenty of men can do that, but to suggest it's an innate wiring is just plain wrong.

by pistle 11y ago

didibus 11y ago

I agree, too much of this is hyper contextual. Given America, given young men, given the current socio-political context, given the current economy, etc. Why do those young men in that exact context decide to go. All of it seems mostly anecdotal interpretation. It's all as accurate as a grandmother's remedy for the cold.

vacri 11y ago

I'm glad you said this; I feel much the same way. There's all sorts of fallacies and pop culture theories throughout the article, though the author is a competant writer. One of the ones that really bothered me was the assertion that we should be respectful of the decisions that these young men make - despite the decisions of young adults rarely being taken seriously by society, regardless of the context. As for 'men are clearly wired for war', well, no they're not. As a demographic, they have to be trained hard to take a life (in person at least). Plenty of men can do that, but to suggest it's an innate wiring is just plain wrong.