The root cause of Africa's problems?

[Virus]

so how can a culture that is creating such a huge catastrophe be regarded as superior?

and we are forcing this changed climate on everyone on this planet.

i hope they will be smarter than we were and not drive 1 ton cars with one person in it. but use alternative fuels or atleast fuel efficient cars. one can be rich and still ahve a reasonable CO2 footprint.

Changed your mind on that "huge catastrophe" have you?

 

[DC]

Changed your mind on that "huge catastrophe" have you?

no, why do you think so?

 

[McHrozni]

oh dear, you really need to read up on AGW someday....

DC dodges again! The crowd is unsurprised.

Seriously though, if you think AGW will "destroy" human climate, you're either deluded or on drugs, probably both. Alter it, sure, damage conditions favorable to humans, yes, but destroy it? Ludicorus.

Now to return to the topic, causes for human misery in Africa. Thus far the only resaon for it not being cultural is "Nazis had a superiority culture complex, therefore this is wrong and the reason is not cultural". It doesn't really impress me.

McHrozni

 

[Mark6]

Nazism was based on racial supremacism.

150 years and before, Sweden was a very poor country. In 1840 its GDP/capita was only 40% of the British GDP/capita. A third of the population emigrated during the 19th century, mostly to the US.

However, between 1870 and 1970, Sweden transformed and became one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Why was that? Was it because the institutions and policies adopted? Or was it because some animals migrated here, as the theory of someone in this thread predicts?

I am still waiting for Cleon to answer this one.

Or for that matter, for Cleon to explain which animals (or geography) Arabs lost 500 years ago, causing them to stagnate.

 

[Mark6]

a guy from the culture that destroyed the world climate is trying to claim superiority, how utterly arrogant.

"Destroyed", past tense? The world has NO climate any more?

 

[Cleon]

I am still waiting for Cleon to answer this one.

There's nothing to answer. "Was it because the institutions and policies adopted?" - probably. What does that have to do with the price of lutefisk?

Or for that matter, for Cleon to explain which animals (or geography) Arabs lost 500 years ago, causing them to stagnate.

Why am I required to explain this? I made no such claim.

 

[portlandatheist]

a guy from the culture that destroyed the world climate is trying to claim superiority, how utterly arrogant.

i dont think culture is superior of inferior. they are diffreent. some like it that way others like it another way.
your examples however are not cultures.

i hope they will be smarter than we were and not drive 1 ton cars with one person in it. but use alternative fuels or atleast fuel efficient cars. one can be rich and still ahve a reasonable CO2 footprint.

but our lack of commitment to do something against AGW shows that we are not that superior as you wich to believe.

See the problem above? Seems like you are criticizing car culture but yet cultures can't be better or worse than others, only different. Some like it this way (hummers and SUVs) and others like it another way(public transportation, and bikes).
Cultures and cultural norms such single occupancy SUVs are fair game for critism and evaluation.

 

[Mark6]

Why am I required to explain this? I made no such claim.

My apologies. It was Geni, not you:

Well yes. Europe has a better food parcel and an unmatched selection of domesticatable large mammals.

 

[DC]

DC dodges again! The crowd is unsurprised.

Seriously though, if you think AGW will "destroy" human climate, you're either deluded or on drugs, probably both. Alter it, sure, damage conditions favorable to humans, yes, but destroy it? Ludicorus.

Now to return to the topic, causes for human misery in Africa. Thus far the only resaon for it not being cultural is "Nazis had a superiority culture complex, therefore this is wrong and the reason is not cultural". It doesn't really impress me.

McHrozni

it migth very well be destroyed from the pov of humanity.

 

[DC]

See the problem above? Seems like you are criticizing car culture but yet cultures can't be better or worse than others, only different. Some like it this way (hummers and SUVs) and others like it another way(public transportation, and bikes).
Cultures and cultural norms such single occupancy SUVs are fair game for critism and evaluation.

there are no superior cars.

 

[portlandatheist]

there are no superior cars.

Adam Sandler begs to differ:
NSFW

 

[Virus]

there are no superior cars.

So nothing is better than anything. You last ditch effort is to retreat into absolute relativism.

Wealth and freedom is no better than civil war, poverty and anarchy. That's just their bag.

 

[DC]

A crappy car from Eastern Europe that breaks down and rattles us inferior to a Jaguar.

not when you consider the price.

 

[Virus]

not when you consider the price.

Why don't you move to Somalia if it's no worse than rich Switzerland. So what if the life expectancy is three decades lower and most people can't read. That's their bag.

Yemen is good. So what if the accepted form of changing government is to murder your way into power then hold in until someone does it to you. That's their bag. No better or worse than peace, order and freedom.

 

[DC]

Why don't you move to Somalia if it's no worse than rich Switzerland. So what if the life expectancy is three decades lower and most people can't read. That's their bag.

Yemen is good. So what if the accepted form of changing government is to murder your way into power then hold in until someone does it to you. That's their bag. No better or worse than peace, order and freedom.

i prefer direct democracy. but i will not blame other people's culture if they happen to be living in a country that doesn't have that.
other peope prefer a strong leader that rule the country. i dont.

 

[Virus]

So terror and tyranny aren't actually bad?

 

[DC]

So terror and tyranny aren't actually bad?

who said that?

 

[Virus]

So it is bad?

 

[DC]

So it is bad?

i think so.

 

[epepke]

This seems to be the specter of Guns, Germs, and Steel, a book that tries to explain the success of Eurasian empires by disease and domesticable animals.

Of course, the book is badly titled, as it has almost nothing about guns or steel. It should have been called "Germs, Germs, Germs, Some Animals with Germs, Some More Germs, About 40 More Unnecessary Pages About Germs." Still, given that it's oversimplified, popular, vapid, speculative, grandiose, self-congratulatory pablum, it's not bad as such. That is, it's an idea to think about, amongst other ideas, and a pretty good one.

However, it really don't deserve the let-all-superglue-out-tongues to Jared Diamond's puckered sphincter, a process normally reserved for the likes of Noam Chomsky and Rush Limbaugh. It happened to hit a sweet spot, giving very white people a way to think (or pretend to think) about Africa with thinking of themselves as racists. It was welcome because the old "damn white colonialists" idea was wearing thing, especially after all that fun Robert Mugabe had.