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War

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Posts posted by War

  1. What Is The Greatest Ancient Civilization?

    in History

    Posted

    War, the zero comes from India, but not without Central Asian Al-Khwarizimi (Ruveyn where are you?), so I guess it should be in a list of the most important civilizations. Then of course the question of what a civilization is arises. If a Westerner such as myself considers what is now the PRC, the Republic of China, and Singapore, and their history, all "China"_; then I guess I fishermen from Dalian could consider Greece, the Roman Empire, the French Kingdom, Britannia, and ultimately the USA, the SAME Civilization. The origin of the name "West" to refer a ciilization comes from the schism 1400 years ago and refers to "Western Christianity" in contrast to "Eastern Orthodox" tradition. The line loosely follows the division of the Roman Empire, but that's not the origin.

    By an Objectivist standard there has not been yet any proper civilization since its definition implies the full grasping of rights. Etymologically, civilization comes from civitas ("city") so "right-grasping" Aztects would thus have to be considered civilized. I'm sorry but for historiographic purposes I am inclined to use the latter definition since it differentiates the Aztecs from the vast expanses of inhabitated americas where no cities were built. So I -almoast- equate civilization with sedentarism. I and suspect (by the replies) most of you do as well.

    Was Chinese philosophy less consistent than Western philosophy? Confucian philosophy was banned from time to time, but it was mainly ugly religious budhism that was prohibited for most of its history (?).

    This takes me back to answering Moebius.

    It is precisely the success of the chinese settlers in Singapore, Indonesia, etc, that prompted me the question (over and over) of why didn't a unified china not invaded those territories "in time". Then I suspected it was the same union that "saved" it from the northern warmongerers. Another interesting coincidence/difference. While the Romans activeley reppelled the Barbarians, Western History was made by marriage of the Mediterranean Citizen and Barbarian from the woods or the steppes. As I understand China was broken out only twice (prolly wrong), during the Kublai Khan empire with the Song remaninng in the South, and finally the Manchu taking over China to its empirial end - and ultimatlely through natioanalism and communism, then Comrade Xiaping and Milton Friedman, the Chinese seem to be prepared enough to take back the title it'd loosely lost in the XVII c.

    So it was Western Philosophies (such as nationalism, socialism, and later capitalism in its pragmatic compromised Chicago variant) that influxed China to its humpy recovery.

    I guess my point with this is one made by the book "the Medici Effect" (?): that is the crossroads of cultures (I'd say of philosophies) that makes for a city or a civilization's success.

    I can prove this further:

    The "peoples" (linguistically classified) that experimented the more travel and contact in a shorter lapse ,whether as aggressors or victims, were the most succesful (think English or Israelites) while the ones who never left their homeland nor were invaded by foreign powers until very recently were left behind (think Western or Subsaharian Africa)

    Native Americans, or for a more extreme example, Aboriginal Australians, DID travel a lot out of Africa, and they might have been mighty powerful and witty back then, but stagnated for the last couple of millenia because for their continental isolation.

    Are you agreeing or disagreeing ........?

  3. What Is The Greatest Ancient Civilization?

    in History

    Posted

    Well first of all I have tried to reply the owner of the thread, but it kept boucing me back to the last page ( I thought my post would've been under his post ); secondly I can't make another thread of the same topic, isn't that spamming? And lastly how should I ask if I want to ask ' Why isn't India on the list '

    The primative tribes of Africa and Mesopotamia are also "old" Does that mean they are great and we should all cast off all technology, wear loin cloths, and hunt for food and forrage for berries?

    It's also one of the most blatant and disgusting examples of mysticism and trampling of basic fundamental human rights (i.e. the caste system and the "untouchables").

    Stop making such idiotic statements on this forum. Do you even know who Ayn Rand is and what Objectivism is or are you just an ignorant troll posting absurd stupidity?

    I didn't say that and the reason I didn't name those tribes is because most people don't even know who they are. Ayn Rand is that woman who created Objectivism.

  5. Why are intellectuals so Grecophilic?

    in History

    Posted

    That test could have been done by anyone and anyone could've falsified that report, that is not true evidence; but you know what? If you are still in belief that acupuncture does not work, its alright because I am tired of convincing people who are like the missionaries who thinks their dogma is the ultimate belief. So let's leave it at that.

  7. Why are intellectuals so Grecophilic?

    in History

    Posted

    Where did you exactly read acupuncture doesn't work?

    And to those who thinks acupuncture does not work can you show me your evidence? I would like to view it myself to see if I may be wrong. And DavidOdden, I am asking his race because I feel he is speaking from a western perspective.

  11. Why are intellectuals so Grecophilic?

    in History

    Posted

    Ok first of all to all three of you I am sorry I didn't read the post clearly because I just thought you want to hear some inventions by the Chinese that weren't well-known.

    To David, yes the next actual seismograph was only invented in 1703 by some French guy I forgot his name, but again I didn't know the topic better so I'll shut up. But I would like to point out about the point where you said the majority of people would believe the Chinese had invented the first earthquake detector because sometimes people remember the most trivial things and just for example, textbooks ( most that I know ) would credit the detector to the three gents, mainly Milne in opinion ( actually that's what my old textbook still says ).

    Practice of acupuncture - It does work, the Chinese aren't stupid and they know quite well how to handle most medical problems unlike the medieval times of the western world. Take a look at this picture I've found on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Hua_t08.jpg. I know you are going to say something negative about this, so I'll start here by saying those Chinese Characters are identifying the vital parts of the human body. Our science is not yet advanced enough to explain many things, the human body is still a mystery so you cannot say it's just a bunk.

    Blast Furnace - This was quite random and I didn't know much about it, so I'll agree with you about the Africans ( Egyptians?) had been smelting as long as the Chinese have and the Westerners ( assuming you are saying Greeks ) might also have been smelting as long as they have.

    Dim Sum- I was just joking...

    Final Words - In my high school days, the teachers tell us the first printing press was invented during the Industrial Revolution; In grade 9, my teacher thought the Portuguese had invented the compass. I am making the same mistake all over again am I?=)

    They've made guns, but they just stopped doing it for what reasons? I don't know=p

  12. Why are intellectuals so Grecophilic?

    in History

    Posted · Edited by War

    Well if you are talking about an invention that other civilizations didn't make later on ( let's say up to 1,000 years) and only the Chinese did, you can name a few: The first earthquake detector ( which has been used until the seismograph was invented by John Milne), practice of acupuncture ( modern science can still not explain how it really works ) , blast furnace (during the Han Dynasty, one of China's strongest times), and who can forget the lovely dim-sums. Of course there are more, but I really don't want to spend my day listing them.

  25. What Is The Greatest Ancient Civilization?

    in History

    Posted

    I say China, and I read a post about China's inventions compared to other civilizations. I just want to inform that person that the first ' earthquake detector' was invented in China. As for herbal medicines, I wouldn't say China is the only civilization that still practices it - India? - but it sure is popular.

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