Armor

Note: The Neolithic Revolution was about 10,000 years ago when agriculture came on the scene.

Last weekend I was daydreaming and chatting with a friend about nothing in particular.  While talking, I realized that the Garden of Eden story from the Bible was about the Neolithic revolution.  I happened upon this article by searching those terms on Google.

The article is very interesting.  Technology is making it easier for the rich to secure their wealth.  This means that when the socialist revolution finally does come, and I believe it will, it will be far more cataclysmic in nature than they have been in the past.  However, a new wealthy class will rapidly develop out of the ashes and within a few generations the society will be well on its way to where it started as a capitalistic society.

Socialism has a terrible track record at long-term sustainability in a Neolithic society because we reproduce too fast and live too long.  Resources become so scarce that hyperinflation occurs and millions of people starve.  This is the point where it breaks down and a class society forms.

It is all very cyclic.  Thus, I propose that the answer (to Life the Universe and Everything) cannot be found in this domain.  Perhaps we need to change our perspective on suffering.  Empathy tells us that suffering ought to be erraticated, but why should we feel more empathy for a human being than a canine being or arachnid being?  Perhaps the answer is that we should have equal compassion for all beings; or that we should perceive all beings as more similar to us in ambition and strife than we may have realized.  I think it is clear that life is going to persist regardless of what humans do.  It is far too resilient to succumb to any human-born disasters.

One must balance the need for survival with the pursuit of Nirvana.  I think Christopher McCandless (of Into the Wild) summed it up best: "Only a life similar to the life of those around us, merging with it without a ripple, is genuine life, and that an unshared happiness is not happiness."