Aeon: 'Civilisational collapse has a bright past – but a dark future' (FAO Shyaku) Archived Message Posted by Ian M on May 31, 2019, 11:53 pm via http://ranprieur.com/ Some silly bits, some measured pros & cons. Here were some of the pros: ***** https://aeon.co/ideas/civilisational-collapse-has-a-bright-past-but-a-dark-future 'Civilisational demise can also provide space for renewal. The emergence of the nation-state in Europe wouldn’t have happened without the end of the Western Roman Empire many centuries before. This has led some scholars to speculate that collapse is part of the ‘adaptive cycle’ of growth and decline of systems. Like a forest fire, the creative destruction of collapse provides resources and space for evolution and reorganisation. One reason we rarely appreciate these nuances is that archaeology mainly depicts what happened to the lives of the elites – a view of history through the eyes of the 1 per cent. Until the invention of the printing press in the 15th century, writing and other forms of documentation were largely the preserve of government bureaucrats and aristocrats. Meanwhile, the footprint of the masses – such as non-state hunter-gatherers, foragers and pastoralists – was biodegradable. Because of this hierarchy, our visions of past collapses are typically seen through the eyes of its most privileged victims. Dark Ages are called ‘dark’ due to a gap in our records, but that doesn’t mean that culture or society stopped. Yes, it might mean more wars, less culture and less trade – but the archaeological record is often too scarce to draw settled conclusions. And there are powerful counterexamples: in the time of disorder between the Western Chou (1046-771 BCE) and the Qin (221-206 BCE) dynasties in China, Confucian and other philosophy flourished. For the peasantry of Sumer in ancient Mesopotamia, the political collapse that took place by the start of the 2nd millennium BCE was the best thing that could have happened. James C Scott, a political scientist and anthropologist at Yale University, notes in Against the Grain (2017) that early states ‘had to capture and hold much of their population by forms of bondage’. The end of the Sumerian state apparatus and the flight of elite rulers from cities meant an escape from long hours in the field, heavy taxation, rampant disease and slavery. The skeletal remains of hunter-gatherers from this time suggest a more leisurely, healthy life with a more varied diet and active lifestyle. The ruin of the state was likely a relief to these people.' ***** Shyaku, I finally got back to your previous post on a related subject: http://members5.boardhost.com/xxxxx/thread/1558604439.html cheers, I Message Thread: Aeon: 'Civilisational collapse has a bright past – but a dark future' (FAO Shyaku) - Ian M May 31, 2019, 11:53 pm In the current instance, it will mean a halt to growthforever, a population cull, and the chance for - Rhisiart Gwilym June 1, 2019, 6:50 am Re: In the current instance, it will mean a halt to growthforever, a population cull, and the chance for - Ian M June 1, 2019, 10:03 am Sometimes you just have to admit: fate has us in its grip, always, whatever we do. NOM - Rhisiart Gwilym June 1, 2019, 11:58 am I have a long flight tomorrow :-):-) - Shyaku June 1, 2019, 9:33 pm Re: I have a long flight tomorrow :-):-) - Ian M June 2, 2019, 8:02 pm I am not against civilizational collapse .. - Shyaku June 5, 2019, 4:41 am Re: I am not against civilizational collapse .. - Ian M June 11, 2019, 9:02 pm   Searching