>> It seems to me that we are natural empire builders...
If that was the case, the world would be full of empires the way bees build hives. Empires are exceptions due to the circumstances rather than the rule. Also, as a society gets more and more affluent (often a by product of empires) it becomes more and more tolerant and freedom loving. In other words, once the empire building fever dies down and the society returns to normalcy, humans tend to pay more attention to arts and humanities than killing each other.
>> It is my belief that we are far better off with "empires" and the civilizations that they bring into being, than as primitive men without medical care, amassed knowledge, or much in the way of art or amenities.
You are mixing unrelated cause and effects with one another. Think of the major empire builders in the world, the Romans, the Mongolians, the Arabs, or even in the more modern times, Hitler, Stalin, etc. What contributions did they make to humanity? It is not the empire that improves the lives of the people; it is the period of piece that fallows. At best we can say that empires provide for the cross pollination of arts and sciences during their mature and settled stages. But is there reason to believe that peaceful exploration would not have caused progress?
>> The modern outlook is what brought us science, effective medical treatments, an end to slavery, and a lot of other good things.
How so? Medicine has been with mankind since the dawn of time. Ancient Egyptians were quite good at it and Egypt was never really an "empire". [edit, just to give an idea of how good the Egyptians were at it, they had made birth control pills. It took modern science eons to come to that invention] Slavery was ended in Persia some 2500 years ago. Buddha brought enlightenment to many nations in isolated locations.
The key to progress is not empires. The key is freedom of thought and analytical thinking. Ancient civilizations with population far less than today's and without marvels of modern technology managed impressive accomplishments in both science and humanities.
ST
PS The aborigine in Papua New Guinea I told you about (as well as some others I know of in Africa) do engage in cannibalism. It is actually to pay tribute to the dead and to become more like him than to satisfy hunger. |
