Subject:
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Re: Israel is Losing
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.off-topic.debate
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Date:
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Wed, 8 Oct 2003 09:33:58 GMT
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Viewed:
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192 times
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In lugnet.off-topic.debate, Larry Pieniazek wrote:
> I found this interesting...
>
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53169-2003Oct6.html
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> I'm not sure I agree with this, viscerally...
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> "The only places where a Western culture has successfully transplanted itself
> are those where great population pressure and genocidal methods were used to
> extirpate the indigenous peoples. This is what happened in the United States. "
>
> but when I try to think of counterexamples, I can't.
Neither can I. I don't think it is 'western' culture thing either, after all if
you've already got a culture why would you need to adopt someone else's. If you
go back in history then all the 'great civilisations' were either created
through war (e.g. roman, mongol) or were confined to roughly their own
geographical areas (greek, aztech (although they did fight wars)).
However some elements of cultures, sometime quite sizables, do transfer without
violence, e.g. American fast food and Japanese car manufacturing management.
As a slight straying from the point, something which I have struggled mentally
with for a while (not to the detriment of my mental wellbeing!!) is the
discrepancy between one view I hold and another
The first is basically that people shouldn't fight and that invading,
supressing, etc another coutry or people is wrong.
The second (might be a bit contriversal) is that if you don't want to be
invaded, suppressed, etc then you have to be stronger than the aggressor. If
you're not then it is survival of the fittest. Take for example European
colonialism, it worked because Europeans had firearms which gave an obvious and
unfair advantage. But is it unfair? Everyone had the oportunity to invent them
and all the other superior technology.
I think a lot of came down to climate and population density, if you cans urvive
by being a nomad and not having to do much to keep warm then you don't need to
start on the technology bandwagon, until, at least, someone who hs comes along.
Tim
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Israel is Losing
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| I found this interesting... (URL) not sure I agree with this, viscerally... "The only places where a Western culture has successfully transplanted itself are those where great population pressure and genocidal methods were used to extirpate the (...) (21 years ago, 7-Oct-03, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
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