Humanity's worst mistake

[Danny Ocean]

But you do realise that we will never run out of resources right?

Wrong. Basic economics: resources are finite; human demand is infinite.

We will run out eventually.

populations will stabilise and we'll be able to feed everyone.

Until the non-renewable resources run out, and boy, we use a lot of those.

This isn't goddam rocket surgery people. It's basic maths. Your head is in the clouds if you think that the Earth can sustain any significant population forever.

 

[Maeta]

Celebrity culture... it's the evaluation of someone who serves no real purpose as significantly more important than those who work to support them, and then the celebs just gob it all back in their faces

Either this or the economy, and savings, which have screwed everyone over with this recession, because the mega-rich hoard all the money so that everyone else gets nothing. If the money is spent then it still exists, whereas if it's just left to gather dust in someone's account then, whilst prices still rise, the money disappears from those lower down the chain of evil (also known as the economy) so that they cannot afford to buy anything, but when they do, it all goes to the mega bank accounts

Maybe even the industrial revolution, which has increased the production of food and many other things, whilst reducing the numbers of people involved in the production procedure, and thus there are less jobs these days causing the increased unemployment, though this fits more in with the previous one, and also in a way with another one: slavery, which I'm surprised hasn't really been mentioned (aside from with religion and war, which is potentially linkable to this)

 

[The Code]

OT the greatest mistakes must have been the wars based on religion, it doesn't matter what you believe in, you're still a human

I'd have to agree with this one. I think religion is one of, if not the greatest mistake Humanity has made. The fact that it's so pervasive in our modern culture and stifles scientific development so easily is offensive to me. The ancient Greeks had it right in my opinion. If there was a major scientific or philosophical discovery or advancement, no one looked at it as an affront to the gods. They thanked the gods for the gift of knowledge and inspiration, paying them tribute out of gratitude for the blessing.

EDIT: Yes, I'd have to say government is also one of the biggest ones as well. I'm an Anarcho Communist. I believe that the highest power I have to listen to is my own judgement and that we don't need money to get along in life, just cooperation.

 

[SD-Fiend]

Religion. Since its very beginning its been used as an excuse for genocide, war, dictatorship, you name it. In every conflict I can think of, religion played a part.

the Spanish-american war and the American civil war are 2 that I can think of off the top of my head

 

[Beliyal]

So in my anthropology class today, we discussed how this one anthropologist arguest that crop and animal domestication was humanity's worst mistake...

Did your professor explain why does this anthropologist argues that's our worst mistake? I'm really interested about his reasoning. Alternatively, could you give me the name of the said anthropologist at least? I'd like to see how he explains his idea. I study archaeology (and I listened, and will listen, a few anthropology classes), so we learned that crop and animal domestication are essentially what made the civilization possible, and effectively, created the world we know today.

On topic; I don't have a one-dimensional opinion about this. I hardly believe we can single out one, or even two, five or a hundred events from our past and say they were mistakes. There's something good and something bad in everything.

 

[Stephanos132]

Giving people leave to ask banal questions such as this seems like a strong contender, purely because it's pretty much just dressing up peoples distaste for x thing and try and make it seem legimate and, worst of all, right.

 

[Tiger Sora]

Gasoline. (Or should I say devices that use gasoline or other refined types of crude oil). Nothing in the last hundred n' so years has had more of an impact on society than it.

Cars let the average person travel a much greater distance.
It's shrunk the world with airplanes.
And every single product produced has in some way come into contact with oil be it either transportation, manufacturing and may even be made out of oil.

Since The Great War, war has never been fought with such mobility. Armies can travel well more than a dozen times further in a day.
Nor has more people ever died in War or due to it. 60 million plus dead in WW2. Over 100 million since 1900.
It's just made war even more horrific.

Number one contributer to global warming as well.
It's caused plenty other problems too.

 

[OriginalLadders]

Coming down from the trees, when we were still primates. *cynical comment*

Oh please, leaving the oceans was a bigger mistake.

 

[biggskanz]

I'm going to be controversial here, but I think one of (not the worst, but in the top ten) the worst things humanity has done, or rather failed to do, is the failure to institute population caps in the last century, with strict regulations and harsh punishments for breaking those rules. I even wouldn't be averse to (as a last resort) adding birth control to the water supply in countries with greater than 3% growth per year. The population is increasing out of control, and we're running out of room and food and resources. Unless we want WW3, over natural resources, within the next century, we need to do something now.

Overpopulation is a myth.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZVOU5bfHrM

 

[The-Epicly-Named-Man]

Jesus. Oh, edgy!

Actual, serious answer: Law suits. Justice isn't a monetary transfer.

Edit:

I'm going to be controversial here, but I think one of (not the worst, but in the top ten) the worst things humanity has done, or rather failed to do, is the failure to institute population caps in the last century, with strict regulations and harsh punishments for breaking those rules. I even wouldn't be averse to (as a last resort) adding birth control to the water supply in countries with greater than 3% growth per year. The population is increasing out of control, and we're running out of room and food and resources. Unless we want WW3, over natural resources, within the next century, we need to do something now.

My arse. Over-population is only an issue in cities. Everywhere else is underpopulated. The issue isn't birth control. It's attempting to compensate for a growing population in an urban area, while letting the underpopulated areas go to sh*t, thus increasing the population of the overcrowded area, and forcing the young from underpopulated areas to emigrate. I suppose that's the worst thing we've ever done then.

 

[theheroofaction]

The assumption that everyone except your particular niche is a plague upon the world.

That's what's wrong with humanity, that's what's wrong with everything.

Or to put it in words we all understand, STUFF LIKE THIS.

 

[Speakercone]

Humanity's worst mistake was agriculture? What a load of crap. The anthropologist in question appears to have very little regard for the entire history of civilization.

 

[dimensional]

Cant remember who it was but they said something along the lines of "Humanity was given two legs so first it can make a mistake to the left then the right left again and so on" (note im probably slightly paraphrasing been a while since I have heard the quote).

Way I see it you can only make mistakes if you have a set path and goal and do something that derails you from that or to put it simply do something you didnt mean to do or not do something you should have/meant to have done and since I dont believe humanity has any particular grand unifying plan I dont believe it can make mistakes or correct choices it just is.

Oh and I am aware I contradict myself with the first quote its just a quote I liked rather than expressly agree with.

 

[Comando96]

Our realisation that you can control people discretely... but:
You employ people who know how and you can trick them into doing what you want.

 

[Magicmad5511]

Humanity's biggest mistake is allowing of course war while not settling things peacefully.
A less obvious answer though. FOX NEWS. They only spread hate and should be taken off the air.

 

[cthulhumythos]

not making me immortal, supreme overlord of all existence.

 

[Viral_Lola]

I would have to say wars over religion.

 

[donisaac]

But you do realise that we will never run out of resources right?

Wrong. Basic economics: resources are finite; human demand is infinite.

We will run out eventually.

populations will stabilise and we'll be able to feed everyone.

Until the non-renewable resources run out, and boy, we use a lot of those.

This isn't goddam rocket surgery people. It's basic maths. Your head is in the clouds if you think that the Earth can sustain any significant population forever.

What is Rocket Surgery? And no its not basic maths, there are just too many factors, all of Africa is a gold mine with raw resources, the uninhabitble areas of Russia are full of Natural Resources, the gulf of mexico has litres upon litres of petrolium, imagine a fully industrialized India, or China, theres too much to be exploited still.

Also, food is never ending, even if every single animal on this planet goes extinct, our crops are advanced enough that we never run out.

 

[NinjazInside]

i actually think Gunpowder and Guns were not one of our worst mistakes, no where near, not a particularly good thing but neither a mistake. But the one mistake i will definitely say is one, Religion in general i guess, maybe if i had to scale it back a bit Religious Wars.

 

[Hank Wants Pie]

Greed.

Why? Wars, crisis, robbery, murder, betrayal, conflict, madness... You name it.