Why is Humanity considered primitive?

A lot of scientists and philosophers will argue that we've barely scraped the surface of the nature of reality, and we don't even rate on the Kardeshev scale of advanced civilizations- we are the bums who are refused entry to the galactic nightclub while the Borg and the Time lords get VIP access, And that's harsh considering the breakthroughs that we've made in cosmology, medicine and science in general.

Many scientists don't rate us well as a species. They focus on what we haven't achieved instead of what we've achieved, Theoretical physicists like Michio Kaku are adamant that we are so far behind that alien civilizations would see us as a bunch of hairy, grunting bipeds who still bang rocks together so we can watch TMZ. The problem is these advanced civilizations are yet to be found, which could make the Kardeshev scale an inaccurate measurement of just how far we've come.

Immortality was once considered a divine power that was only bestowed on the deities that many people worship. Nowadays not only are we entertaining the idea of immortality, but are tantalizingly close to actually achieving it through various scientific endeavors, and some have gone as far as to say that in the coming decades we will birth a generation that will live forever. Think about that for a moment. And if immortality isn't enough for you, what about that other facet of human life-knowledge? In some aspects we may be behind our suspected neighbors in that department, but look at what we've achieved in a few hundred years.

WMAP provided us with one of the most important images in history-an image that takes us right back to the birth of universe as we know it. And we knew how to do this because more than a hundred years ago humble patent stamper daydreamed of riding a wave of light and gave us the theory of relativity, which is relative to everyone including those advanced aliens, after all we didn't write the laws but we all must follow them. And with that knowledge we've discovered how stars are born, how they die, and we can see how the universe was born and how we can foresee it's empty, lonely end. And in the coming decades we could unravel the secrets of dark matter and dark energy, and maybe unite the four forces that makes up everything in the universe.

So why is it that humanity is considered minnows compared to these alleged advanced races that could inhabit the milky way? Is it because we haven't achieved interstellar travel yet? Is it because we haven't transcended into beings of pure energy yet? or is it that we are not on the same cultural or social level as others that may occupy our galaxy?

We have a fair grasp of our biology and the universe that contains us, and there are certainties in our universe that every species will be aware of, humanity included, so In a way we are on the same level as these advanced E.T's. Sometimes I think that Kardeshevs scale is not a rule but a guideline, and if a human can dream up such advanced civilizations then in theory we can achieve the same feats in time.

At least that's the way I see it. It might be an ill informed uneducated opinion, but it's an opinion nevertheless.

Humanity kills each other. Humanity is struggling with compassion towards others. Some lead lavish lifestyles while their neighbors struggle to keep the roofs over their heads. I even remember a video of a man being beaten, and people passed by him without even attempting to help.

With all of humanity's achievements, we're still too self centered to solve poverty, hunger, and homelessness.

This is my theory as to why we rank so low.


However, I have hope. When I see communities come together after disaster strikes... I have hope.

When I see a community come together to assist a 17 year old after he lost both parents in an accident with costs and taking care of things... I have hope.

We're far from where we need to be, but I have hope in humanity.

a reply to: Thecakeisalie

I think those who would suggest that humanity is no where near the point at which we would become a desirable social contact, to another species in the galaxy, is that although our technology, and our imagination are impressive, and do us great honour as a species, we are let down by the overwhelming importance of greed and territorial boundaries, which so obsess our nations leaders.

Furthermore, humanity does not operate as a whole, but as many nations, and within those nations are disenfranchised people, poverty, and division down lines which would likely as not, seem utterly barbarian, and totally pointless to any species capable of communicating and traveling interstellar distances, since in order to reach that point, they would likely as not have had to abandon all such thinking, in order to actually achieve such a goal as exploration of interstellar space.

a reply to: Thecakeisalie

The human race as it currently stands has existed for 500,000 years, in contrast to the 165 million that the dinosaurs existed. Relatively speaking, we are an infantile species that has barely begun to gain its footing.

overwhelming inequity between different people. constant warfare. just look at our priorities. we pay basketball players millions of dollars and we pay our teachers in charge of our children's minds garbage. pharma companies make millions off of consistently "treating" people and not curing them. our governments are corrupt world wide and millions are starving to death while people here in the cities and burbs are throwing away food by the pound. and the list goes on!

i think a lot of it has to do with our apparent need to find faults in others rather than to simply appreciate the beauty and immense potential of ALL Life [people]

It's our seeming inherent focus on the negatives that limits our true potential.

until we can come together as one race, the human race, we'll always be a bit behind the eight ball, so to speak.

???

originally posted by: Thecakeisalie
Theoretical physicists like Michio Kaku are adamant that we are so far behind that alien civilizations would see us as a bunch of hairy, grunting bipeds who still bang rocks together so we can watch TMZ.

Yeah ... I can understand why he'd say that ... ATS Thread - Pregnant Pakistani Woman Stoned To Death By Her Family When things like this happen ... and there are people who dismiss it or defend it ... then it's easy to see that large chunks of this planet are still in neanderthal stage.

Despite my penchant for reason and intellect--- my desire to believe we can aspire--- do better---be more than we are!

There are still a lot of people out there I just want to whomp on the head with a big ole stick, 'Hard As I Can'

What can I say other than were not like Vulcans...all about logic---were Slaves to our primal aspects, emotions... and the desire to hit one another on the head when they need it

a reply to: EternalSolace

However, I have hope. When I see communities come together after disaster strikes... I have hope.

Actually, when I see communities coming together after a disaster, I have hopelessness. Why couldn't the communities come together BEFORE the disaster, and have plans and contingencies already in placed? For example, it was well-known that the next big Hurricane to hit New Orleans would do devastating damage, yet, the New Orleans community didn't come together to mitigate the damage. So when the country did come together after the disaster, my question is, why did it have to be so bad in the first place? Therefore, what gives you hope (a fool's hope) is very, very primitive.

Excellent thread and ideas so far.
I agree with everything that those before me have stated, and want to add that the way we recklessly treat this planet, and use technology to devise ways to destroy it (and us and everything else living on it) is absolutely derelict. Reprehensible, irresponsible, short-sighted, and too focused on 'profit.'

Corporations have destroyed our world, and continue to wreak havoc on it every. single. hour. of. every. single. day.

I wouldn't want anything to do with us if I were observing from afar.
Pathetic, and not all that "civilized" as I understand the term.

S/F to the OP

originally posted by: iosolomon
a reply to: EternalSolace

However, I have hope. When I see communities come together after disaster strikes... I have hope.

Actually, when I see communities coming together after a disaster, I have hopelessness. Why couldn't the communities come together BEFORE the disaster, and have plans and contingencies already in placed? For example, it was well-known that the next big Hurricane to hit New Orleans would do devastating damage, yet, the New Orleans community didn't come together to mitigate the damage. So when the country did come together after the disaster, my question is, why did it have to be so bad in the first place? Therefore, what gives you hope (a fool's hope) is very, very primitive.

Hindsight is 20/20.

originally posted by: EternalSolace
Humanity kills each other. Humanity is struggling with compassion towards others. Some lead lavish lifestyles while their neighbors struggle to keep the roofs over their heads. I even remember a video of a man being beaten, and people passed by him without even attempting to help.

With all of humanities achievements, we're still too self centered to solve poverty, hunger, and homelessness.

This is my theory as to why we rank so low.


However, I have hope. When I see communities come together after disaster strikes... I have hope.

When I see a community come together to assist a 17 year old after he lost both parents in an accident with costs and taking care of things... I have hope.

We're far from where we need to be, but I have hope in humanity.

I agree! We are primitive mainly because we are warlike, violent and tribal. Take a look at the news headlines of late with Russia, Syria, Crimea, and the Ukraine for example. We still do not seem to be anywhere near the point where we get it, that war does not achieve anything except to drain a countrys' resources, and rack up the body counts. Plus technology wise, we have a ways to go with current interstellar star travel.....just ask the current et's checking us out..

a reply to: iosolomon

Actually, when I see communities coming together after a disaster, I have hopelessness. Why couldn't the communities come together BEFORE the disaster, and have plans and contingencies already in placed? - See more at: www.abovetopsecret.com...

Another great response, which leads to a tangential point:

WHY build cities in the deserts, or in swamps, or on violent beaches, or earthquake fault lines, or sand? Stupidity. Utter stupidity. And especially when resources are "diverted" to those areas to 'make up for' the lack of local sustenance.

The Colorado river no longer meets the sea. Why? Because the desert southwest wanted water to keep their LAWNS alive.
I realize the laws are very slowly changing - but I fear it's already too late.

Huge plastic floating islands, same issue.
Stupidity.

We really aren't all that far from the Idiocracy portrayed in the film of that name.

a reply to: iosolomon

I would venture to stay optimistic and guess that we just haven't learned yet. Humanity is stubborn and is so entrenched in current mind sets and habits, that it's going to be awhile. There's no choice but to learn and adapt.

a reply to: Thecakeisalie

Immortality is like playing a game at level-1 forever. I wouldn´t do that at any cost. When you disturb nature, something terrible happens. Material growth will not make us advanced enough to be considered worthy of a galactic visit.

I think we are asking the wrong questions because we ´think´ we ought to be invited into something and be recognized. I don´t think life ´seeks´ recognition at all.

We behave more like a stage-performer seeking recognition from his peers for his achievements.

We are in the infancy of mankind, we still use oil for a start.
We have yet to invent holographic television
We still burn coal to make electricity
We still use petrol to run cars
I wouldnt say we're a backward sort but we sure are'nt going forward at any pace

We have advanced technologically well beyond our ability to use technology responsibly.


As a species we are like 3yr olds walking around with a loaded handgun. Tragedy just waiting to happen.

And the way we exploit the planet....that's a subject for another thread.

I can see where everyone is coming from. We are cavemen when it comes to persecution, intolerance, etc but many assume that aliens civs are all benevolent races that are greenpeace, Buddha and World Vision rolled into one, But that's yet to be seen, for all we know they haven't made contact because of their own internal strife.

What I'm talking about is the possible scientific gap. Einsteins laws are constant throughout the universe and have been proven, the reptilians could call it 'Grrgs theory of Hrrrr' but it's relativity no matter what the language is. And if there was an advanced species out there that can harness the power of dark energy or so forth, it doesn't mean they are millions of years ahead of us because in a hundred years or so we could harness the same power, after all it took less than a century between the first powered flight and the first moon landing.

My point is that we can't compare ourselves to other races we don't have any real knowledge about. A human came up with the idea of a Dyson sphere but it doesn't mean there's a million year old Graawl sphere somewhere in our galaxy, We could be the first to make such a construct.

Until we find another race, we are the benchmark. Time will tell if we are the leaders or the loafers of the galaxy.

Us primative? That is crazy talk. We are not primitive beings.

What color M&Ms do you like best? I like the green ones. Doesn't that girl in the red dress look hot? Lets go out and have some drinks tonight and watch the game on a big screen, they have some free junk food at the bar for this event. I'm thinking of BBQing a chunk of dead meat tomorrow night, that is not primitive because I am using a new gas grill.

Now, this is normal human behavior, not primative behavior. You have to set a baseline, we just set it by our view of what an advanced race is. We aren't a very smart race of beings actually, just ask your cat.

Bear in mind that there is only one species, as far as we know, that condemns the human race. It's not as if all the sentient species in the galaxy are sitting around a table saying, "Yep, humans are bad news." Given how poorly we are said to do by ourselves, why should condemning ourselves be seen in any better light? To say that our species is self-loathing is a circular argument, so what are we left with? A bunch of elitists who think they are above the fray, for they surely don't include themselves in their judgment of the rest of us. If only they were with other Enlightened Ones, everything would be peachy.

My own suspicion is that we avatars are not in a position to understand the purpose of it all, therefore our blanket condemnations are missing the mark. But I don't know for certain, and these other folks who say they do don't either. They just don't know it.

This is not simply a philosophical exercise. Ask yourself what the result of this blanket condemnation is. These people who think they've got it all figured out and know for certain that humanity is basically flawed would like very much to turn this situation around so that we all followed the True Path to Enlightenment. Perhaps some believe this will result in our admission to the Galactic Federation of Planets, or perhaps their goal is simply for all of us to become Vegans to satisfy their idea of what constitutes moral and good behavior. Perhaps it is to "save the planet" from whatever fanciful evil they believe in. It doesn't really matter, because the solution in all cases is the same:

To tell you what to do. And if you resist, the solution is ultimately final: Eliminate you. The Final Solution. We've been there before. So who is evil to you? Blacks? Whites? Jews? Bankers? Commies? Illegal Immigrants? Americans? The 1%? City Dwellers? The Tea Party? Left-wing Fascists? It doesn't matter, really. Once you start condemning people it's hard to stop, and it all leads to the same place:

The Road to Hell. It sounded good originally. Really. It did!