"Humanity isn't violent because it's evil, its violent because it's born of a violent natural order--an order that it's still very much a part of. The ability to perpetrate violence has been hardwired into our brains through a desperate struggling to survive that's gone on for millions of years. Our species exists not in spite of, but because of our ability to physically strike out when threatened. It's evolutionary behaviour, and it isn't going to go away quickly or just because we want it to. To ignore it is to make a fundamental error. "

"Humanity isn't violent because it's evil"
Precisely- notice most (but not all) violence stems from ignorance, a lot of the rest stems from deprivation.

'Evil' and 'good' are both learned (or so at least I believe- and with reason). Genetics might have a lot to do with it, but not all. In as much that we have come as far as we have (and dear God! have we come far!), I believe we can go further, and every day we do... somewhere someone in the world takes a step forward (Spirit? DNA Vaccines? Nanotube transistors?).

This progress is real. Its tangible. Its not trivializable by waving your hand and saying: 'were all a bunch of animals anyway'. Animals don't fly to mars. We are animals for sure, but we are also something completely new and never before seen on this planet- at least as far as we can tell. What this something is and how much farter it can take us- I sure as hell can't say... But its going to be a great ride finding out while I'm alive.

In places where for thousands of years we watched 2/4ths of our children die agonizing deaths before age 5, we weep of the loss of 1 in 100 children. This was an impossible pipe-dream to our forefathers, but its our reality. In place where humans used to live to 30 if they were lucky, and where nobody died of 'old age', people are actually able to live long enough where the question gets raised: 'how long is too long'? This was a campfire story to our ancestors, but its a reality for us.

Now, getting eaten alive is more rare than getting struck by lightning. Paracitic infestations are a rare disease instead of just the way things are. Now, at least aportion of the world votes on who has the power of life and death over us.

I am no more equipped to envision the shape and scope of a better future than a caveman was capable of seeing this world 10,000 years ago. Anyone who tells you they know how to get there is an idiot or a sociopath (or Toms favorite: a stalinist!).

But whta I can say is that humanity keeps truckin' and humanity keeps trying. And humanity keeps succeeding, at least for the past 10,000 years. If a future without war is possible, we just might... might get there. I don't know how, and it certainly isn't clear. But I'm willing to allow the possibility (but until then yes, I know how to shoot better than most folks ever will and I do own a gun).

Davin L.