Intergalactic Summit

Wisdom has absolutely nothing to do with it.

I'm not entirely sure it's a matter of lacking intelligence or wisdom. As much as those of us with compassion would like to believe that someday the whole of humanity could work together toward bettering the species as a whole, I don't think it's even possible short of permanent drastic measures. The fact of the matter is that no species of plant or animal known to exist can be said to "act in the best interest of the whole species" in the same sense that some of us idealistically talk about. It's very nearly universal that communities of any species can and do fight against other communities of the very same species. Everything from colonies of insects to packs of predatory mammals routinely compete, often fatally, with one another for resources from food to mating rights.

Knowing that, it seems incredibly idealistic to think humans, animals that have so masterfully nurtured thought and awareness into differences among the same species, could ever possibly work together as a unified species. Of all the animals in creation, we have the most ways to label each other as different, outsider, or simply "not self" since we can make such seemingly abstract divisions as political alignments or concepts of morality. Simply put I don't think we're capable of any sort of utopian society, and further I don't think nature, creation, or any flavor of Divinity ever intended us to be capable of it.

Of course that very last bit simply means those people who adamantly strive to be the "masters of their own destiny" will see it as the final way a person can become more than what they are or were.

I have but one question.

What the hell is a turtle?

A Vherokior mystic told me once that the turtle guides me, amazing reptiles they are, in certain cultures they symbolize longevity and wisdom.

Some cultures are more primitive than others.

Completely off topic though, wouldn't you say?

Captain Drengist;

Thank you for the thoughtful reply. I think I get the gist of your argument but will have to apologize up-front: I do poorly with political sciences. I would like to ask a follow-up question, if I may. Democratic systems elect people by simple popular vote. I believe the idea of mob rule has been mentioned, so I won't expound deeply on that point, though I feel it is an important weakness. However, what in your system is to stop a popularly-elected official in your society from simply deciding to keep the means of power - weapons, wealth, the means of production - for himself and his close allies, and becoming a tyranny? He cannot be deposed easily, now owning the power in the system and being willing to use violence to maintain his rule.

I suppose that my deep issue is that the system seems too fragile, and too reliant on the Activated Type II Human Cognitive System. It is far too easy for fatigue, frustration or excess emotion to activate the Type I Human Cognitive System, at which point co-operative planning collapses to the smallest stable relationship structure, which is usually about 20-60 people and no more than 150. Neurological changes to the human cognitive map would be needed before this system could be considered reliable. Am I mistaken? This is not my field, so I am likely missing something.

I would also like to point out a small comment made by Captain Oliver, and to make a rebuttal of sorts. Earlier, you commented that most Caldari are merely 'cogs in a machine,' sir. I agree! I would only like to point out that so too are the Gallente, or any others in societies. You may say that the Gallente worker has more mobility - I say that this is not so. He or she will find work commesurate to his or her ability, just as we do here. We are all bound together as gears in a machine. The only question is how well that machine works.

Why is this a bad thing? Cogs hold tight to one another, turn together, and in unison they can grind down mountains or build miracles. I'm glad to be a cog. Indeed, I ask you, sir: where is the joy of life without it?

Don't. Just don't.

Take a step back and think. Would you say this to your mother, your brother, or a lover? Would you like someone to talk to you this way? Do not compound a perceived offense with an intentional one.

Prove you're more than just a reactive animal; prove you are a rational, reasoning person.

I apologize, I meant no offense. I simply don't quite understand the claim of liberty very well. All but the most wealthy in our societies are equally bound by obligations and debts. We all use currency to establish what resources individuals are given access to; for the Lai Dai and Rodan man alike, both pay their bills and spend the excess for some fun and comfort. And all of us, wealthy or no, we are all bound even more tightly by the requirements of our friends and family, our love for them and desire to see them happy. Their expectations define us even as we define theirs.

This is what I mean when I say that we are all cogs. There is no shame in it, and I would wish it no other way. In what meaningful ways are the Gallente free and the Caldari not? What of these things would you be rid of, in the name of your liberty?

Also: I'm sorry, I didn't very much enjoy your song. I'm sure its very nice! Its just not very easy for me to listen to.

Well seeing as you annexed that handy little "meaningful" qualifier on there I suspect any reasons I give will probably be dismissed. Despite that I would point out that as an individual, when I wake up in the morning and go to class at the Academy it is not as part of some collective in which I am simply another faceless automaton, it is as an individual with individual ideas and thoughts within a group of other individuals with different ideas and thoughts. When we work it is not as some uniform caldari gray collective but as a group of individuals focused on a common goal. Perhaps I'm simply arguing semantics here but they are important semantics, and if you ever call me a smeggin cog again there may come a day when I will be the one to show you the difference between a cog and an individual. The cogs will be my drones picking away at your shields, and I will be the individual who flys up your ass and shoves a rack of blasters down your thruster, are we crystal?

And you have proven that you like to make claims without accurate evidence to back them up, something I thought was frowned upon within Caldari society. I have not saved face after any fact, and unless you can provide accurate evidence to the contrary I suggest you refrain from calling a Gallentean a racist.