Book Review: Guns, Germs and Steel
Guns, Germs and Steel by (((Jared Diamond)))
(((Diamond)))’s thesis is that European civilizational attainment was due to dumb luck of geography, because Anglo-Saxons were situated geographically at the far end of a temperate region that stretched from Western Europe to Asia. This temperate band facilitated transfer discoveries, plants, and animals across the band, as opposed to North and South America in which two large temperate zones are joined through a narrow and inhospitable strip (Central America) which blocked transfer. I don’t doubt that there is some truth to the idea that the large temperate band was helpful in networking a larger number of humans together. This ties in nicely with (((modern))) world history in which the globe produced modernity and not NW Europeans. It also ties in with Blank Slatist egalitarian theories by giving an environmental cause for the differences in civilizational attainment that has no dependency on genetic factors.
(((Diamond))) basically asserts that the people of Papua New Guinea would have been able to attain the same level of civilational achievement, had they been born with Eurasian Temperate Zone Privilege. This supports the egalitarian hypothesis that genetic differences between populations are of minimal importance.
Modern world history is designed to deconstruct Western Civilization, and to find its ‘roots’ throughout the globe. This is why World History courses have replaced Western Civilization courses throughout the West, in order to reinforce in our people that there is nothing special about the West, because the West was simply privileged and piggy-backed on the greatness of other civilizations.
The best antidote to this historical leveling that I have found, with the most rigorous investigation and defense of the singular and distinct greatness of the West is Ricardo Duchesne’s The Uniqueness of Western Civilization. I highly recommend it. Duchesne opens by investigating the (((intellectual forces of leveling))) in academia which have been working implacably to undermine Western Civilization’s place as something beautiful, unique and worth preserving. (((Jared Diamond))) is among these forces.
I also recommend Duchesne’s site: The Council of European Canadians.
Poseidon Awoke: Realist 
[…] Guns, Germs and Steel […]
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“(((Diamond))) supports the egalitarian hypothesis that genetic differences between populations are of minimal importance.”
In the very long run, genetic differences are shaped by the environment. If we imposed eugenic selection on the African population, ensuring that those of above-average intelligence had more children, while at the same time giving all white people free housing and food and limiting their numbers with random killings (as e.g. malaria does today), within 10,000 years the African race would be of superior intelligence.
GG&S explains how geography did exactly this (and also why the Chinese are so conformist — their country is geographically more amenable to political centralization).
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Yes, Africans have the same genetic potential as Europeans, and a program of eugenics could realize this potential. I don’t think that GG&S explains the eugenic selection process which produced Europeans or Western Civilization as being of environmental origin. My understanding is that the monarchies undertook this project in conjunction with the Church as they bred and raised their human livestock for certain traits.
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Pointing out that you are treading dangerously close to the “god-complex” of leftists/atheists.
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God complex? Because of the history of eugenics among NW Europeans? Eugenics is natural for humans, we call it ‘domestication’. The domestication process is often unconscious. Our ancestors killed the dogs that bit them and fed the ones that obeyed them. They left the little or sour strawberries where they found them, but picked the bigger sweeter ones and carried their seeds to their next hunter/gatherer location, thereby spreading those plants. We kill those humans who break the rules of cooperation, or don’t breed with those who are defective. All very natural and unconscious forms of domestication (eugenics). Man domesticates man, and now we are allowing man to run wild again. The process of domestication of man will likely continue one, consciously or unconsciously. We also call this process of self-domestication Gene-Culture coevolution.
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If you unwrap the bandage of an old katana, you’ll see a test report scratched onto the tang e.g. “This sword cut through five bodies [of executed criminals] with one stroke.” No wonder the Japanese are so famously law-abiding today.
I recall from GG&S that strawberries were one of the *last* fruits to be domesticated, because when breeding new varieties you must isolate your plants from bees bearing wild strawberry pollen and birds pooping wild strawberry seeds.
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The comment was in reference to:
“Yes, Africans have the SAME genetic potential as Europeans, and a program of eugenics could realize this potential.”
There are those who believe this statement to it’s logical consequence and are attempting to realize it. It’s not clear why you would expect to be the “domesticator” instead of the “domesticated.” Nor why you think the concept of “eugenic” is going to help you.
“The process of domestication of man will likely continue”
Likely? What are you calling all of this egalitarianism, SJW, PC, soon to have advanced VR tech, gay/bi/trans/hermaphrodite, crap that is going on? If you say “degeneracy,” you may want to look at your statement that humans “have the SAME genetic potential as Europeans, and a program of eugenics could realize this potential.” Again, why do you think claiming “eugenics” or “domestication” is going to help you?
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Diamond also says that primitive cultures are almost invariably annihilated by mere contact with advanced cultures. Among many other highly accurate things – his proggie creds are obvious and therefore easy to ignore. Overall the book is pretty good. Not in the same league as Clark, but good.
Then there’s the gray areas. Zebras are in fact significantly harder to train than horses. On the other hand, how hard to train were primordial horses? How well would some modern scientific husbandry go down with zebras? Recall the silver fox experiment. Diamond’s idea is animals co-evolved with human hunters in Africa, and have the tough and vicious facades you would expect, and it’s not entirely implausible.
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