GenX4322Super User
We kill what we don't understand.posted 20 Jun 2012, 19:31When I was a little, my brother and I used to watch a lot of horror and alien movies. Out of the blue he said, "If aliens exist they'll never let us know. Not if they're smart, anyway." Curious, I asked why and he answered flatly "Because we kill what we don't understand."
Powerful words, and they never left me. I would hear his theories many times over in the years to come: We kill what we don't understand because we're terrified of anything different than we are. Rather than think or grow, it's easier to strike out and destroy. He cited one historic reference and current event after another to the point that I couldn't disagree with his argument. We really do like to kill what we don't understand, don't we? After all, it happens every day, in so many ways. He opened my eyes. I could see small scale evidence in the form of school yard bullies, and his global theory everywhere in wars, violence and riots. Imagine: The world terrifies you so much that you fear anyone or anything different than you. You think you're opting for safety by adopting this mentality, but what happens is you never grow, you never change and you never get to learn. Not that it excuses all the horrid behaviors that stem from it, but that's outright sad, isn't it? Can you imagine the most valuable thing you would ever be able to do would be spew rhetoric because, within a prison of your own design, you've lost the ability to think and grow? It's frightening and I hope should I find myself there it won't be for very long. Dear Aliens, Really, we're all trying to grow up around here. Maybe when we treat each other better you'll want to hang out with us. Until then, I don't blame you for keeping it on the down low. Sometimes, it's bloody tempting, even to me. Please feel free to use our summer house. We're not there right now and all the popcorn is yours. Sincerely, Gen |
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- Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Theoretically, I imagine they might:
A)Avoid us like the plague we are and keep on travelling.
B)Kill us off with an advanced biological weapon that would mercifully leave the majority of other species unharmed.
C)Wait for us to snuff ourselves, we are heading down that path at full speed anyway.
But...
Imagine huge inter-galactic trawlers drifting slowly over major cities and suburbs towing vast, inescapable drift nets beneath them...annihilating families, cultures and races without distinction as they utilise us as a handy consumable.
Or...
Maybe they give us the flick, then proceed to use their advanced technology to nurture Earth back to the pristine Eden it once was before we learned how to exploit every single facet of it for our own advancement.
Human beings are violent, hateful, xenophobic creatures who want to control everything near them. If someone is of a different flesh tone, they are subject to suspicion and unwarranted hate. If they have different beliefs, they are looked upon with disgust and vehemence. If a person is of a different social class than others around them, they are subject to ridicule and spite.
We ostracize those who are different than us in order to strengthen the genes we see as acceptable. People seek out others of a like mind, of similar stature, similar beliefs, and so on, it goes back to us wanting to propagate the species but seeking similar creatures to ourselves in order to help us survive and, in turn, the genes we see as important will survive.
And if you don't think it true what I say, look at church-goers. They culminate and co-mingle with other church-goers and can be spiteful and vindictive if you are not affiliated. Look at mothers, or wedded couples. Look at websites like 4chan and Reddit.
All of these are examples of us seeking out similarities in people with which to associate, and rebuff those that do not meet our personal standards of quality.
We're such strange creatures...
Our saving grace though is the fact that we are driven by a need to understand, to make sense of the world around us like no other species on this planet. We empathise and demonstrate compassion and we struggle to understand ourselves and our place in the world. It might seem that we are a purely destructive species but that is because our ingenuity has enabled us to be more efficient, but efficiency is not a gauge of aggressiveness. Would the ants who forever war with each other show any more constraint if they had our power? Would the chimpanzees who use strength and brutality to create their hierarchies be any kinder than we? We are as equally capable of nobility as we are of savagery, and though we often fail; it is the former and not the latter that we aspire to.