jlc

MichaelAerethun -

Things are getting a lot better. You might be interested in Steven Pinker's "The Better Angels of our Nature: Why Violence is Declining". I have taken the liberty of copying the promo blurb for the book below:

"We’ve all asked, “What is the world coming to?” But we seldom ask, “How bad was the world in the past?” In this startling new book, the bestselling cognitive scientist Steven Pinker shows that the world of the past was much worse. In fact, we may be living in the most peaceable era yet.

Evidence of a bloody history has always been around us: the genocides in the Old Testament and crucifixions in the New; the gory mutilations in Shakespeare and Grimm; the British monarchs who beheaded their relatives and the American founders who dueled with their rivals.

Now the decline in these brutal practices can be quantified. Tribal warfare was nine times as deadly as war and genocide in the 20th century. The murder rate in medieval Europe was more than thirty times what it is today. Slavery, sadistic punishments, and frivolous executions were unexceptionable features of life for millennia, then were suddenly abolished. Wars between developed countries have vanished, and even in the developing world, wars kill a fraction of the numbers they did a few decades ago. Rape, hate crimes, deadly riots, child abuse―all substantially down.

How could this have happened, if human nature has not changed?

Pinker argues that the key to explaining the decline of violence is to understand the inner demons that incline us toward violence and the better angels that steer us away. Thanks to the spread of government, literacy, trade, and cosmopolitanism, we increasingly control our impulses, empathize with others, debunk toxic ideologies, and deploy our powers of reason to reduce the temptations of violence."

Jan, helping

I agree with a lot of what mamaemma, blarman, marshalletc said, but I think that an obvious point is being missed: Art LEADS.

The way to bring awareness of Objectivism to people is to Make Movies About It. Make superheroes endorse the individual (we are discussing this on another thread), make people who work for freedom the good guys instead of the good guys being cast as people who work for Mother Earth or World Union.

We will never make headway against the socialist ethos unless we have a strong image to present of ourselves. Too long have the capitalists been the Bad Guys of the movie - we need to be the Heroes now.

This Site is the result of a movie. It has had more effect on promoting the Randist philosophy than anything other than AS the book itself. More movies are being made, discussions on this (now huge) Objectivist site are lively. I think we are on the right track. We have to win people's hearts before they will be receptive to our engaging their minds.

Jan

Huh? Nothing could be further from my mind. I stated that Capitalism is the most productive path we have ever taken. But we were talking about rich super heroes and I was specifically addressing Stark Industries.

Just because you are a Capitalist does not mean that you are good or that your business practices are ethical. The whole foundation of the first Iron Man movie was that his munitions were now being used by terrorists - who then caught Tony as a big bonus prize.

My spinoff from this was that it is easier to just do good if you are healing people; if you are making munitions you really have your job cut out for you to be sure that you are not inadvertently doing evil.

Jan

I generally just watch Scifi movies, but I ended up selecting this one for some reason one time and was entranced. Of course, I have ridden since I was a teen and the love of horses and their beauty is not foreign to me, so perhaps it was a slippery slope.

Jan

Might be Who would have thought that a racoon with a blaster on a walking plant would have been viable?

Jan

Best Iine in Avengers1 ! "Puny god."

Jan

One of the things that was remarkable about the first (and second too - but more startling in the first) Avengers movie was that the two Avengers without super powers had as effective a role as the demigods that make up the rest of the team. I thought it was superb when Black Widow interviewed Loki and he got the best of her - so NOT!

I have never watched Gattica. It has been recommended to me several times, but it seems like it is quite a downer.

Jan

Captain America: Winter Soldier is the film with a message closest to my heart. One of Steve Roger's secret super powers is to turn grey into black and white.

Jan

Of the current batch, I think that Captain America: Winter Soldier is my favorite.

Jan

We have overcome so many obstacles in the course of our evolution to become the apex predator of the world (on land, by ourselves; to beat orcas we have to use tech). We have had to invent challenges that our Paleolithic minds could not have imagined: space, for example. Or this: http://www.xkcd.com/1520/

I have not despaired of defeating socialism. It will be difficult; it will take time. It can be done. It is fun to be here, is it not?

Jan

I am glad that he has not been entirely blackballed.

Jan

I think tem is correct in making the link to childhood. This may be the root of why socialism regrows, why this ethical system is persistently taught. People have a rose-colored view of the childhood they had (or the one they imagine they should have had). It is explicitly an image in which independence is traded to a benign authority in exchange for nurturing.

It is not so much that people have to get over 'being children' as get over 'wanting to be children'.

Jan

Maybeso I should watch these films.

Jan

I have heard of these movies for many years, but I have not seen them. I generally only watch Scifi/Fantasy movies. I have probably missed some movies I would really like by doing this.

Jan

I think that you are correct about the first Ironman being pro-individual and pro-technology. (Note how many superheroes are fabulously wealthy in their mundane life - this is pretty much part of the archetype by this time.) I will say, though, that I have always considered 'medicine' to be an ethical getoutofjailfree card. Even if you do something that is ultimately wrong, you have a smooth ethical path to follow.

Making munitions is just the opposite. Were I in charge of Stark weapons systems, I would have to spend a lot of time thinking about the uses to which my product would be put, and how to track every item I sold so I knew who was using it. (This gets complex when you consider resales.)

While we all agree that Capitalism is the most productive path that humanity can follow, many bad things (and stupid things) have been done by Capitalists. It is the right path, but everyone who walks it is not someone I would like; indeed, some I would fight against quite diligently.

Jan

Not a movie, but do not forget Babylon 5. There are some worthy scenes in that show.

Jan

Huh. Yes. Secretariat. I would not have remembered that - but you are right. It is a triumph of the individual. Great music too.

Jan

My heartfelt sympathies. It gets more...accustomed, but I still catch myself saying, "I'll have to tell Itsy about that!" from time to time.

Jan

At your request khalling,
My story now is writ,
I hope the tale is fit
And not proclaimed appalling.

Jan (you started it)

This would not make a good impression on aliens surveying our planet. The absence of our ability to engender a world where everyone is fed is one thing...our failure to exclude slavery is quite another.

You are right Abaco: sad. sadsadsad.

Jan

Yeah. That was super of her. She never liked reading or studying, but she quite fully supported the geeky tendencies of her daughters (and left a few scars on school personnel in the process of so doing).

It has been 15 years and I still miss her.

Jan

Due to this thread, both Wm and I have been looking up the stats on driverless cars. It is stated that not one of the accidents was the fault of the driverless car - but I do not have a complete description of each incident. It would be wonderful to see road tests where the type of action you describe was tested on a track: multiple (driverless) cars in a lane; the last one accelerates to pass and then cuts in.

It occurs to me that your misgivings are both reasonable and testable - there IS an answer to that question. In Star Trek and B5, humans control the actions of a battle - both flying and firing. It will probably be AI that does that in the real future...the great-grand-daughter of the driverless car.

Jan

Scandalous! For your non-conformity, you will NOT be getting an invitation to the soiree.

Jan

And you are right, pcat. We Should be proud. Are you as tired of self-depreciation of ourselves and our species as I am?

Jan, rereading