On Mon, Sep 19, 2016 at 05:18:03PM -0300, juan wrote:
On Mon, 19 Sep 2016 02:43:08 -0000 xorcist@sigaint.org wrote:
I'm not really following. No doubt we can find more than a few instances of people acting like animals, but what of it?
It's also true that people can act in rational ways, and that's what supposedly make them human.
Agreed, with the proviso that quite often people rationalize, rather than act rationally. They rationalize away animal instincts.
I don't know what you mean by 'rationalize' - Isn't that psychobabble?
Also, there are animal behaviours that don't entail aggresion towards other animals, so even "acting like an animal" isn't necessarily a bad thing.
Bottom line again, your 'realistic' view that SOME humans do what they do because of their animal nature is bullshit.
I think you missed the agreement - I'm reading you both saying almost the same thing on this point. Juan, I agree with your wording, but it's not what I read xorcist say. I'm also very strongly agreeing with the principle "we should strive for something higher than our 'base instincts'", as well as "'rationalizing' evil behaviour as merely 'animalistic' tendency is a self fulfillment of propagation of that which we say is evil. xorcist said what some people do; you say they shouldn't do that, except for those "animalistic" behaviours which are not evil (of course). Looks to me like we're all on the same page here...
Right. You are generalizing and that's why your argument fails.
I am quite guilty of tearing down generalisations and missing if there was something useful, whether in frustration or whatever.
about Joe six pack, basically.
Joe six pack doesn't necessarily join the military to murder brown children for fun.
Doesn't necessarily, but often enough 'does' (effectively does). Sad but true. What Joe six pack ought do is say "no, I conscientiously object, and if that's what it comes to, I'll take solitary for X years, rather than go and shoot those brown children" - there are just so many personal stories over the web these days of ex grunts who've become "peace activists" (perhaps to purge their conscience?) but that does little to stop the killing machine - saying no -before- shooting folk in other countries is what is needed to stop the killing. </preaching to the converted>