sparky wrote:.
an intuitive insight is that the more sophisticated and specialised a society is , the more brittle it is .
simple agrarian communities are about shock proof to anything bar a big comet
a mega-city of twenty millions is just an accident waiting to happen
anything would do
sparky wrote:.
sophisticated societies certainly support large populations
but it's mostly because they draw from a large hinterland , either by conquest ( most empire capitals )
or by trade ......Phoenicia , Florence , Venice , Amsterdam , London
I cannot think of one which survived unless it was in isolation , like Japan or to a large extend China
the cause of their demise is usually institutional sclerosis succumbing to a variety of political and environment stresses
Pops wrote:Not sure what makes a Doomer see things always on the cusp. To me that is the critical balance, understanding life as we know it can change in a heartbeat while not spending my life looking for dead people.
Shit Happens is a good outlook because normalcy bias is the default human setting. If we had to decide, for example, whether or not cross traffic were going to stop for their red traffic light, we'd never get anywhere. And if cross traffic didn't believe that red light was real? If it were told in fact that red means go faster?
I realize we didn't evolve our conscious to deal with traffic lights, but you get the point, because we only have so much bandwidth, we take the expected totally for granted and ignore or even actively put up a mental block against the low odds, uncomfortable thing. Keeping an eye open to potential danger, especially after a lifetime of little to no danger is really hard. Weather warnings, unusual knocking noise in the boiler, layoff rumors, spouse "working late", POTUS discussing martial law to overthrow an election, etc go by unnoticed because they happen all the time and always come to nothing (well most of them happen all the time): right up to the time they "surprisingly" come to something.
But it looks like the thread isn't about Doomers so much as it is about Doom. Right now we should be celebrating our new digital tools, clean tech, easy lives but instead we are suffering the Boomers Reactionary Revolt. Baby Boomers were the most educated generation ever, as such they were far more liberal than their parents and able to sway opinion and policy. Educated, liberal people are generally more supportive of civil rights than conservatives. Not to say they are less biased, just that they pass more, well, liberal laws. There used to be lots of laws about adults' sex lives, about immigration, about voting restrictions, drugs/alcohol, being non-white; and lots fewer laws about abusing the commons, abusing the poor, the worker, the minority— and the non-minority—women.
But Boomers are also the Me Generation, so now we have the reaction to all that liberalness as the white, uneducated majority around the world finally reassert their grievance at no longer being the advantaged group. It is shocking/not surprising to read EU say that progressives multiculturalism is tribalizing neighborhoods and the women will soon "be ditched" —whatever that means. (maybe PO needs an incel subforum, LOL) White people are pissed that black people can move in next door, that women are bosses, that homosexuals are out and no longer punchlines. And pissed that they are called deplorable for being pissed. Simple as that.
Alfred Tennyson wrote:We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Tanada wrote:Funny I am not pissed about any of your three examples. What I am pissed off about is being blanket accused of being pissed off about those examples and any defense I raise to the charge being summarily dismissed.
Pops wrote:Tanada wrote:Funny I am not pissed about any of your three examples. What I am pissed off about is being blanket accused of being pissed off about those examples and any defense I raise to the charge being summarily dismissed.
Why would you be pissed if you aren't a part of that group?
I'm in the same demo as you and I'm not pissed.
Pops wrote:Tanada wrote:Funny I am not pissed about any of your three examples. What I am pissed off about is being blanket accused of being pissed off about those examples and any defense I raise to the charge being summarily dismissed.
Why would you be pissed if you aren't a part of that group?
I'm in the same demo as you and I'm not pissed.
Alfred Tennyson wrote:We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Tanada wrote:Pops wrote:Tanada wrote:Funny I am not pissed about any of your three examples. What I am pissed off about is being blanket accused of being pissed off about those examples and any defense I raise to the charge being summarily dismissed.
Why would you be pissed if you aren't a part of that group?
I'm in the same demo as you and I'm not pissed.
Oh that's an easy one. I am a Christian right of center person and when I express conservative views on any subject I get labeled with the above accusations and many more as a reflex response. Not being of those viewpoints is irrelevant because the people who assume I hold them discount everything else I say using my purported illeberal positions on those issues as the basis for ignoring everything else I espouse.
Ibon wrote:Tanada wrote:Pops wrote:Tanada wrote:Funny I am not pissed about any of your three examples. What I am pissed off about is being blanket accused of being pissed off about those examples and any defense I raise to the charge being summarily dismissed.
Why would you be pissed if you aren't a part of that group?
I'm in the same demo as you and I'm not pissed.
Oh that's an easy one. I am a Christian right of center person and when I express conservative views on any subject I get labeled with the above accusations and many more as a reflex response. Not being of those viewpoints is irrelevant because the people who assume I hold them discount everything else I say using my purported illeberal positions on those issues as the basis for ignoring everything else I espouse.
Tanada, may I ask how you view the Lincoln Group of disaffected Republicans whose conservative principals they claim are being undermined by Trumps populism.
Do you find yourself resonating with their claim or are you more drawn to Trumps populism in your conservative world view?
I want to also let you know that it should be ok to take the moderator hat off occasionally to be more candid about your personal views.
Alfred Tennyson wrote:We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Tanada wrote:But when I express a conservative viewpoint on globalism, the anti-science stances of the D party on certain topics, or a belief in national borders being a key to economic security none of my background or the way I treat other human beings matters because it is assumed I am a deplorable-racist-sexist-homophobic-mysoginist.
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