Apparently you don't understand what I mean. I love technology, but we need an alternate energy source. We've simply come too far to just abandon everything.
"There most vegitarians are either sickly looking or have diets that are very expensive."
Not really. You just have to know what to eat. Meat isn't magical.
"Being moral is a completely worthless word"
You have a point. However, my point was that this is what humans claim to be (many, anyway). I can't kill humans for food, but I can kill members of other species? What if I like human meat?
"Our intelligence speaks for itself just look at the device you are typing on"
It's neat, groundbreaking, etc. However, ultimately, these are merely toys. Humans will die and their existence will mean nothing. The same goes for everything else. Humans may have the ability to invent, but they don't have the ability to control themselves, or the ability to perceive the consequences of their actions.
"B/c if your ancestors never ate meat there lives would have been completely different and the things that happened that had to happen for your existence to come into place never would have."
However, they did eat meat. Those things did happen. There's no way to tell if these things wouldn't have happened in they didn't eat meat. Besides that, just because they ate meat, that doesn't make your arguments any more logical. There's simply no reason to kill another being (human or not) unless it's for survival or self defense. If humans don't recognize this, their own selfishness will surely bring about their demise.
I'm aware. I don't partake in these activities out of protest, and try to get others to do the same. It will change eventually, or humans will surely destroy themselves due to their own selfishness (and possibly destroy many other things, too, sadly).
"It is human nature we are omnivores"
We're also supposedly 'moral' and 'intelligent'. If either of those were true, we'd show self control and not pointlessly slaughter other beings for no other reason than to satisfy our taste buds when there are alternate food sources.
"Hell the reasons humans started spreading around the globe was by following the food, the migrating animals"
That doesn't mean that we should continue, and that doesn't mean that we should have started (again, only for survival or self defense).
"And the fact is millions upon millions of cows sheep chickens and what not would never have a life at all its like asking an embryo if it would rather not be born and experience life or to be born be taken care of never having a care in the world but once they reached maturity they would be killed quickly and hardly any pain to serve an important need"
You can't ask something that doesn't exist if they want to live. However, if it were possibly, and I was told that I was conceived for the sole purpose of being slaughtered by idiotic, selfish beings for absolutely no reason, I'd say that I'd rather not live.
"You act like it isn't necessary"
There's these things called "fruits," "plants," and "vegetables." If none of those are present, then fine, eat an animal (even a human, if you have to). But otherwise, don't.
"Once you get a grip on reality and understand that eating meat is an ingrained part of human nature"
You do realize that vegetarians exist, right? There are perfectly healthy vegetarian diets. It isn't something that we need to do (and something that we shouldn't do for no reason). If humans are truly unable to control their own actions because of simple-minded traditions (which is wrong because, as I said, vegetarians exist), then they aren't nearly as 'intelligent' as they claim to be (many of them, anyway).
"you me everyone on/. would not exist."
I don't eat meat, my friend. You don't need to eat meat to have offspring, either. Not eating meat and starving are two very, very different things.
"The correctness of other peoples actions is not a prerequisit for the correctness of one's own, thankfully you're only responsible for your own actions, and you do have the power to be part of it or not."
I know. I try not to buy products from large corporations whether or not lots of other people are doing so.
"But that's democracy for you"
Democracy is good, but this is just outright corruption. Something must be done sooner or later.
"Still, lead by example, and even if you can't change the world, don't quit trying, and definitely don't join the other side, and try convince as many other people to do the same."
What's the point? In my opinion, the only things that cell phones are really good for is for calling people. Why send 50,000 text messages when you can just call them, or use the internet to communicate with them (oh wait, I forgot that far too many people barely know how to use a remote)?
"Is it really immoral to eat/kill animals without the explicit need?"
Why would a 'moral' being slaughter another being who suffers just as they do for no reason? Humans are supposedly 'intelligent', and they should start to show it.
"Remember that the great majority of those animals would not exist if it weren't for their eventual use as meat."
I'm sure they would rather not exist if the sole purpose for their existence was to be given a cruel death for absolutely no reason, if they were able to comprehend that.
"So they get a life of relative leisure - free from the dangers of predators, fed as necessary, health looked after etc. and all we as for in return is a relatively painless death at some time in the future (a fate they are not aware of either - so no stress from this)."
There's simply no need to do so. They would rather *not* be slaughtered, that much is certain. If they knew it was coming, they certainly would be afraid. There's simply no point in doing this unless it is absolutely needed (self defense, survival).
"That seems a pretty good deal to me. In fact, that seems a much better deal then living in the wild, constantly cold, hungry and scared - not to mention a death filled with much pain and suffering."
Living for a brief period before you're slaughtered sounds better than being free and living a normal life? I don't even want to know what your views on what actions the government should take are.
" Which is what I assume is the alternative that is being proposed for them."
Yes, the alternative is leave them alone unless needed.
"I know people like to pretend that they're helpless in this complex and unbalanced world"
Aren't I? In order for such a thing to work I'd need to convince everyone else to not buy their products. Not so easy. I try, but it certainly isn't an easy thing to do (and in many cases it's difficult or next to impossible to avoid buying everything that these greedy corporations produce). Hopeless? Not so much. Difficult? Yes. Many people seem to be too blinded to see the problem at hand. A government that doesn't *accept* this money would also help, but we all know that likely isn't going to happen.
"People can be corrupted"
I'm well aware, but the ones who seem to do the most damage *are* the corrupt corporations and government. The shortsighted, uncaring people don't help, either.
"We have a lot more power than people like to admit"
I understand what you're saying, but I guess it's just the fact that I don't like music at all and I believe that controlling your emotions is very important (not necessarily making a joke out of everything, just being calm). I wasn't really trying to say that such things aren't important to a degree.
"And average people exploit giant corporations every time they do business together. If they didn't think they were coming out ahead they wouldn't have done business with them."
Not nearly as much. Average people have little to no power of large corporations.
"If society elects a government that sells them out to the rich, who's fault is that, really?"
Who do they elect, then? All of the politicians are the same. Money is what influences them, and they are indoctrinated from birth to believe that it is an all-important object. I'm sure if the average person was in the same place as a politician, they would be influenced by money, too.
"And by getting rid of money you think they'll give something else? What's stopping them from giving something besides money right now?"
Many things take worthless artificial currency to accomplish. You can't just freely ship thousands of pounds of food to those in need. It costs money. That was what I was trying to say.
"Good luck with that..."
I never said that such a system would be easily achieved. Due to the stupidity of much of the human race, it likely never will. I do, however, think it would be a good system.
I still don't see how creating a bunch of sounds qualifies as intelligence.
"Yes, humor"
From the link: "A sense of humor is what holds things together when everything is falling apart."
There's also something called "controlling your emotions." I don't really get angry or sad as most people do, because I recognize that doing so won't change anything. I also don't need to constantly make jokes to remain entertained.
"Yes emphatically"
While it is useful to be able to comprehend another persons view on something, it matters little if their reason for believing what they do isn't a logical one.
"I don't have the energy to explain why understanding languages is another kind"
Important if you want to communicate with others? Yes. However, just because you're unable to communicate with others, that doesn't mean you aren't intelligent. That is all I was saying.
"I agree that it is over-emphasized in the current system, but it is an important kind of intelligence."
Far more than over-emphasized. Terribly so. Memorizing of things that you will use is important, however. I just don't like how the public education system forces people to attempt to memorize information that they won't even use at the job that they wish to possess. It's simply inefficient.
"It sounds as though you are working from the false premise that "Intelligence" is a single fact or feature"
Not really. I understand that different people are good at different things, and that a genius in mathematics may perform poorly at other subjects and such. However, there are certain things which I don't see why they are considered a form of intelligence.
"That doesn't make any sense. If money is worthless then how did they use it to get possessions? Sounds worthwhile to me..."
Ultimately, it is worthless. It is not needed to run a society.
"Second, if other people (aka society) really find those people helpful, then they (society) wouldn't mind voluntarily giving them money."
Not necessarily. Sometimes there is a lack of job and/or a lack of food, while in other parts of the world, there is a surplus of jobs and/or food. Much of this extra food doesn't seem to make its way to people in need, due in no small part to artificial currencies. It's simply more convenient to dispose of it.
"Can you even explain what you mean or is it just mindless babble?"
Shouldn't it have been obvious? My first point was referencing to the fact that giant corporations often exploit the average person in order to get richer (for example, look at the RIAA and MPAA). My second point was referencing the fact that the rich are often able to lobby the government into doing their bidding (such as passing idiotic anti-piracy laws that only help giant corporations, etc). My third point was referencing the fact that often people will neglect to help others because the only way they believe that they can be helped is if they give them money.
"I guess I don't really know what you're talking about then."
I was more so talking about the system proposed by The Venus Project, sorry.
No. I claimed that money *further* limits resources. It puts artificial limits on them that otherwise wouldn't be there.
"Money, prices, and the market system are just a method of dealing with scarcity."
By only allowing those with worthless money (the people that don't have it don't necessarily not help society) to have possessions? By putting artificial limits on the amount of resources that could otherwise have been consumed? Odd.
"Can you imagine a software developer having to say"
No, but in a capitalism I'd imagine that you'd say something along the lines of "You can't have my software unless you pay for it, even though it's in an infinite quantity that will never run out! Pirates are evil thieves who steal my profit that only exists in the future of an alternate dimension where I made more money!" There's no scarcity on software, and yet, strangely, you have to pay for it, while people that don't are called 'thieves', even though they didn't really hurt anyone by copying it. Funny, that.
"money is convenient for doing that, too"
Capitalism is convenient for the elite who want to get richer at the expense of everything else, convenient for corporations who want the government to do their bidding, and convenient for those with the power to help others in need to say "I can't help you, I don't have any money!"
I also wasn't really talking about bartering at all.
Only if you have the ability to do things other than regurgitate established knowledge.
"music"
Wait, what? Music? Why?
"logic and critical thinking"
This is something that a majority of the population lacks. It's a shame, really.
"humor"
What? Why? You could be the most boring person in the world, yet still be "the most intelligent." Conversely, you could be the funniest person in the world, yet still be "the least intelligent."
"aptitude with language and literacy"
That's just regurgitating already established information. While it certainly helps a lot to be able to speak a language and read, it isn't necessarily required to be intelligent, and it isn't something that makes you intelligent on its own.
"empathy"
Not needed to be intelligent, and isn't a sign of intelligence on its own.
"cognitive speed"
It helps, but not so much if you're only able to regurgitate already established information.
"athleticism"
Not at all. This has little to do with intelligence.
"but that doesn't mean there aren't ways to measure intelligence at all."
"If I had to swap with anyone I went to high school with"
As would I, but only because that would mean that I'd have to spend my time attempting to memorize tremendous amounts of useless information because I wouldn't be allowed to pick classes that relate to the job I wish to possess, and be brainwashed with the illogical morals of society. I really don't care for the current public education system at all. It's so inefficient as it is.
"People are shortsighted compared to what they need to be, but not compared to other animals."
That may be true, but other species usually don't have the capabilities to destroy as much as humans do. Many humans certainly aren't careful for being so 'intelligent', and they certainly need to be.
"and the fact that you paint a species of 6 billion with a single brush doesn't mean that there aren't people who can tell different people apart exist."
I know very well that there exists intelligent humans. The number appears to be fairly slim, however. The majority of the human population appears to be made up of brainwashed tools with illogical beliefs who have no mind of their own. Corruption flourishes in the government and corporations, and they keep trying to use their worthless votes to 'change' something. Hopefully they do get more intelligent in the future.
Being able to memorize a few things, while important, certainly isn't everything. Schools teach that it is, however. Can you regurgitate already established information that you likely won't use at the job you wish to possess because we don't allow you to pick your own classes? If so, you're intelligent!
Yet, humans claim to be moral and intelligent. If that was true, they'd realize that members of other species needn't be slaughtered for such selfish reasons other than actual survival (which doesn't happen often, as there's usually other kinds of food). That is the difference. Humans claim to be able to control themselves, but I've yet to see that ability in many people.
In many cases, "normal person" refers to a brainwashed tool who has no real mind of their own and looks at others hoping to gain acceptance. How utterly pointless.
"I wonder if this or similar genes could be responsible for "above average" intelligence in some people."
What makes a person intelligent, exactly? The ability to memorize already established information, or the ability to form ideas and inventions of their own?
Humans haven't really tamed anything. There's all kinds of natural disasters that can and will occur whether humans want them to or not. All humans have managed to do is delude themselves into believing that they are superior to every other species on the planet so that they can slaughter innocent animals in order to satisfy their taste buds, even when there are other sources of food to eat that don't suffer just as we do. Humans also carelessly mistreat the environment with things such as pollution and mass deforestation. For such an 'intelligent' species, humans sure seem shortsighted.
I sure hope that we don't ever have to give up the act of slaughtering members of other species solely to satisfy our taste buds! That would be horrible. We might have to... eat something that doesn't suffer just as we do, like plants!
"Funny how I never see capitalists whining that people aren't giving them free shit."
That is quite a stereotypical statement. Well done. I merely feel that money itself is (and especially will be in the future) useless, as it merely artificially limits the amount of resources that can be consumed. A society without money wouldn't necessarily let people leech off of their work for no good reason.
"and capitalism is horrible - the only thing worse is every other system."
Even ones that haven't been thought up or tried yet? What a hopeless attitude. Capitalism will hopefully be thrown out eventually to make way for a system that allows for society to flourish without the 'need' for worthless artificial currency, or it will likely cause the death of not just us, but much of the environment as well.
"I'm a pretty hard core capitalist, in that I believe it is the only fundamental system that works"
How very closed-minded. So, you believe that it is the only system that works? No other system (even ones that haven't been thought up yet) could ever work? The only system that works is the one that encourages greed, corruption, and selfishness and is the cause for much of the destruction of the environment and even the cause for so many people that go without food simply because they don't have any worthless artificial currency that only limits the amount of resources that can be consumed? The same system that is keeping things that are in an infinite quantity from being distributed freely (software)? Capitalism may be better than some other systems, but it is far from the 'best', and is no be-all end-all system.
Slashdot Mirror
Apparently you don't understand what I mean. I love technology, but we need an alternate energy source. We've simply come too far to just abandon everything.
"There most vegitarians are either sickly looking or have diets that are very expensive."
Not really. You just have to know what to eat. Meat isn't magical.
"Being moral is a completely worthless word"
You have a point. However, my point was that this is what humans claim to be (many, anyway). I can't kill humans for food, but I can kill members of other species? What if I like human meat?
"Our intelligence speaks for itself just look at the device you are typing on"
It's neat, groundbreaking, etc. However, ultimately, these are merely toys. Humans will die and their existence will mean nothing. The same goes for everything else. Humans may have the ability to invent, but they don't have the ability to control themselves, or the ability to perceive the consequences of their actions.
"B/c if your ancestors never ate meat there lives would have been completely different and the things that happened that had to happen for your existence to come into place never would have."
However, they did eat meat. Those things did happen. There's no way to tell if these things wouldn't have happened in they didn't eat meat. Besides that, just because they ate meat, that doesn't make your arguments any more logical. There's simply no reason to kill another being (human or not) unless it's for survival or self defense. If humans don't recognize this, their own selfishness will surely bring about their demise.
"Unfortunately that's not how the world works"
I'm aware. I don't partake in these activities out of protest, and try to get others to do the same. It will change eventually, or humans will surely destroy themselves due to their own selfishness (and possibly destroy many other things, too, sadly).
"It is human nature we are omnivores"
We're also supposedly 'moral' and 'intelligent'. If either of those were true, we'd show self control and not pointlessly slaughter other beings for no other reason than to satisfy our taste buds when there are alternate food sources.
"Hell the reasons humans started spreading around the globe was by following the food, the migrating animals"
That doesn't mean that we should continue, and that doesn't mean that we should have started (again, only for survival or self defense).
"And the fact is millions upon millions of cows sheep chickens and what not would never have a life at all its like asking an embryo if it would rather not be born and experience life or to be born be taken care of never having a care in the world but once they reached maturity they would be killed quickly and hardly any pain to serve an important need"
You can't ask something that doesn't exist if they want to live. However, if it were possibly, and I was told that I was conceived for the sole purpose of being slaughtered by idiotic, selfish beings for absolutely no reason, I'd say that I'd rather not live.
"You act like it isn't necessary"
There's these things called "fruits," "plants," and "vegetables." If none of those are present, then fine, eat an animal (even a human, if you have to). But otherwise, don't.
"Once you get a grip on reality and understand that eating meat is an ingrained part of human nature"
You do realize that vegetarians exist, right? There are perfectly healthy vegetarian diets. It isn't something that we need to do (and something that we shouldn't do for no reason). If humans are truly unable to control their own actions because of simple-minded traditions (which is wrong because, as I said, vegetarians exist), then they aren't nearly as 'intelligent' as they claim to be (many of them, anyway).
"you me everyone on /. would not exist."
I don't eat meat, my friend. You don't need to eat meat to have offspring, either. Not eating meat and starving are two very, very different things.
"The correctness of other peoples actions is not a prerequisit for the correctness of one's own, thankfully you're only responsible for your own actions, and you do have the power to be part of it or not."
I know. I try not to buy products from large corporations whether or not lots of other people are doing so.
"But that's democracy for you"
Democracy is good, but this is just outright corruption. Something must be done sooner or later.
"Still, lead by example, and even if you can't change the world, don't quit trying, and definitely don't join the other side, and try convince as many other people to do the same."
I do.
What's the point? In my opinion, the only things that cell phones are really good for is for calling people. Why send 50,000 text messages when you can just call them, or use the internet to communicate with them (oh wait, I forgot that far too many people barely know how to use a remote)?
"Is it really immoral to eat/kill animals without the explicit need?"
Why would a 'moral' being slaughter another being who suffers just as they do for no reason? Humans are supposedly 'intelligent', and they should start to show it.
"Remember that the great majority of those animals would not exist if it weren't for their eventual use as meat."
I'm sure they would rather not exist if the sole purpose for their existence was to be given a cruel death for absolutely no reason, if they were able to comprehend that.
"So they get a life of relative leisure - free from the dangers of predators, fed as necessary, health looked after etc. and all we as for in return is a relatively painless death at some time in the future (a fate they are not aware of either - so no stress from this)."
There's simply no need to do so. They would rather *not* be slaughtered, that much is certain. If they knew it was coming, they certainly would be afraid. There's simply no point in doing this unless it is absolutely needed (self defense, survival).
"That seems a pretty good deal to me. In fact, that seems a much better deal then living in the wild, constantly cold, hungry and scared - not to mention a death filled with much pain and suffering."
Living for a brief period before you're slaughtered sounds better than being free and living a normal life? I don't even want to know what your views on what actions the government should take are.
" Which is what I assume is the alternative that is being proposed for them."
Yes, the alternative is leave them alone unless needed.
"I know people like to pretend that they're helpless in this complex and unbalanced world"
Aren't I? In order for such a thing to work I'd need to convince everyone else to not buy their products. Not so easy. I try, but it certainly isn't an easy thing to do (and in many cases it's difficult or next to impossible to avoid buying everything that these greedy corporations produce). Hopeless? Not so much. Difficult? Yes. Many people seem to be too blinded to see the problem at hand. A government that doesn't *accept* this money would also help, but we all know that likely isn't going to happen.
"People can be corrupted"
I'm well aware, but the ones who seem to do the most damage *are* the corrupt corporations and government. The shortsighted, uncaring people don't help, either.
"We have a lot more power than people like to admit"
If we're united. We're not.
I understand what you're saying, but I guess it's just the fact that I don't like music at all and I believe that controlling your emotions is very important (not necessarily making a joke out of everything, just being calm). I wasn't really trying to say that such things aren't important to a degree.
"And average people exploit giant corporations every time they do business together. If they didn't think they were coming out ahead they wouldn't have done business with them."
Not nearly as much. Average people have little to no power of large corporations.
"If society elects a government that sells them out to the rich, who's fault is that, really?"
Who do they elect, then? All of the politicians are the same. Money is what influences them, and they are indoctrinated from birth to believe that it is an all-important object. I'm sure if the average person was in the same place as a politician, they would be influenced by money, too.
"And by getting rid of money you think they'll give something else? What's stopping them from giving something besides money right now?"
Many things take worthless artificial currency to accomplish. You can't just freely ship thousands of pounds of food to those in need. It costs money. That was what I was trying to say.
"Good luck with that..."
I never said that such a system would be easily achieved. Due to the stupidity of much of the human race, it likely never will. I do, however, think it would be a good system.
"Yes, music"
I still don't see how creating a bunch of sounds qualifies as intelligence.
"Yes, humor"
From the link: "A sense of humor is what holds things together when everything is falling apart."
There's also something called "controlling your emotions." I don't really get angry or sad as most people do, because I recognize that doing so won't change anything. I also don't need to constantly make jokes to remain entertained.
"Yes emphatically"
While it is useful to be able to comprehend another persons view on something, it matters little if their reason for believing what they do isn't a logical one.
"I don't have the energy to explain why understanding languages is another kind"
Important if you want to communicate with others? Yes. However, just because you're unable to communicate with others, that doesn't mean you aren't intelligent. That is all I was saying.
"I agree that it is over-emphasized in the current system, but it is an important kind of intelligence."
Far more than over-emphasized. Terribly so. Memorizing of things that you will use is important, however. I just don't like how the public education system forces people to attempt to memorize information that they won't even use at the job that they wish to possess. It's simply inefficient.
"It sounds as though you are working from the false premise that "Intelligence" is a single fact or feature"
Not really. I understand that different people are good at different things, and that a genius in mathematics may perform poorly at other subjects and such. However, there are certain things which I don't see why they are considered a form of intelligence.
"That doesn't make any sense. If money is worthless then how did they use it to get possessions? Sounds worthwhile to me..."
Ultimately, it is worthless. It is not needed to run a society.
"Second, if other people (aka society) really find those people helpful, then they (society) wouldn't mind voluntarily giving them money."
Not necessarily. Sometimes there is a lack of job and/or a lack of food, while in other parts of the world, there is a surplus of jobs and/or food. Much of this extra food doesn't seem to make its way to people in need, due in no small part to artificial currencies. It's simply more convenient to dispose of it.
"Can you even explain what you mean or is it just mindless babble?"
Shouldn't it have been obvious? My first point was referencing to the fact that giant corporations often exploit the average person in order to get richer (for example, look at the RIAA and MPAA). My second point was referencing the fact that the rich are often able to lobby the government into doing their bidding (such as passing idiotic anti-piracy laws that only help giant corporations, etc). My third point was referencing the fact that often people will neglect to help others because the only way they believe that they can be helped is if they give them money.
"I guess I don't really know what you're talking about then."
I was more so talking about the system proposed by The Venus Project, sorry.
"Are you really claiming money limits resources?"
No. I claimed that money *further* limits resources. It puts artificial limits on them that otherwise wouldn't be there.
"Money, prices, and the market system are just a method of dealing with scarcity."
By only allowing those with worthless money (the people that don't have it don't necessarily not help society) to have possessions? By putting artificial limits on the amount of resources that could otherwise have been consumed? Odd.
"Can you imagine a software developer having to say"
No, but in a capitalism I'd imagine that you'd say something along the lines of "You can't have my software unless you pay for it, even though it's in an infinite quantity that will never run out! Pirates are evil thieves who steal my profit that only exists in the future of an alternate dimension where I made more money!" There's no scarcity on software, and yet, strangely, you have to pay for it, while people that don't are called 'thieves', even though they didn't really hurt anyone by copying it. Funny, that.
"money is convenient for doing that, too"
Capitalism is convenient for the elite who want to get richer at the expense of everything else, convenient for corporations who want the government to do their bidding, and convenient for those with the power to help others in need to say "I can't help you, I don't have any money!"
I also wasn't really talking about bartering at all.
"Math"
Only if you have the ability to do things other than regurgitate established knowledge.
"music"
Wait, what? Music? Why?
"logic and critical thinking"
This is something that a majority of the population lacks. It's a shame, really.
"humor"
What? Why? You could be the most boring person in the world, yet still be "the most intelligent." Conversely, you could be the funniest person in the world, yet still be "the least intelligent."
"aptitude with language and literacy"
That's just regurgitating already established information. While it certainly helps a lot to be able to speak a language and read, it isn't necessarily required to be intelligent, and it isn't something that makes you intelligent on its own.
"empathy"
Not needed to be intelligent, and isn't a sign of intelligence on its own.
"cognitive speed"
It helps, but not so much if you're only able to regurgitate already established information.
"athleticism"
Not at all. This has little to do with intelligence.
"but that doesn't mean there aren't ways to measure intelligence at all."
It's difficult to measure it properly, however.
"ugly"
Well, I don't know about that.
"If I had to swap with anyone I went to high school with"
As would I, but only because that would mean that I'd have to spend my time attempting to memorize tremendous amounts of useless information because I wouldn't be allowed to pick classes that relate to the job I wish to possess, and be brainwashed with the illogical morals of society. I really don't care for the current public education system at all. It's so inefficient as it is.
"People are shortsighted compared to what they need to be, but not compared to other animals."
That may be true, but other species usually don't have the capabilities to destroy as much as humans do. Many humans certainly aren't careful for being so 'intelligent', and they certainly need to be.
"and the fact that you paint a species of 6 billion with a single brush doesn't mean that there aren't people who can tell different people apart exist."
I know very well that there exists intelligent humans. The number appears to be fairly slim, however. The majority of the human population appears to be made up of brainwashed tools with illogical beliefs who have no mind of their own. Corruption flourishes in the government and corporations, and they keep trying to use their worthless votes to 'change' something. Hopefully they do get more intelligent in the future.
Being able to memorize a few things, while important, certainly isn't everything. Schools teach that it is, however. Can you regurgitate already established information that you likely won't use at the job you wish to possess because we don't allow you to pick your own classes? If so, you're intelligent!
Yet, humans claim to be moral and intelligent. If that was true, they'd realize that members of other species needn't be slaughtered for such selfish reasons other than actual survival (which doesn't happen often, as there's usually other kinds of food). That is the difference. Humans claim to be able to control themselves, but I've yet to see that ability in many people.
""normal" person"
In many cases, "normal person" refers to a brainwashed tool who has no real mind of their own and looks at others hoping to gain acceptance. How utterly pointless.
"I wonder if this or similar genes could be responsible for "above average" intelligence in some people."
What makes a person intelligent, exactly? The ability to memorize already established information, or the ability to form ideas and inventions of their own?
Humans haven't really tamed anything. There's all kinds of natural disasters that can and will occur whether humans want them to or not. All humans have managed to do is delude themselves into believing that they are superior to every other species on the planet so that they can slaughter innocent animals in order to satisfy their taste buds, even when there are other sources of food to eat that don't suffer just as we do. Humans also carelessly mistreat the environment with things such as pollution and mass deforestation. For such an 'intelligent' species, humans sure seem shortsighted.
I sure hope that we don't ever have to give up the act of slaughtering members of other species solely to satisfy our taste buds! That would be horrible. We might have to... eat something that doesn't suffer just as we do, like plants!
"Funny how I never see capitalists whining that people aren't giving them free shit."
That is quite a stereotypical statement. Well done. I merely feel that money itself is (and especially will be in the future) useless, as it merely artificially limits the amount of resources that can be consumed. A society without money wouldn't necessarily let people leech off of their work for no good reason.
"and capitalism is horrible - the only thing worse is every other system."
Even ones that haven't been thought up or tried yet? What a hopeless attitude. Capitalism will hopefully be thrown out eventually to make way for a system that allows for society to flourish without the 'need' for worthless artificial currency, or it will likely cause the death of not just us, but much of the environment as well.
"I'm a pretty hard core capitalist, in that I believe it is the only fundamental system that works"
How very closed-minded. So, you believe that it is the only system that works? No other system (even ones that haven't been thought up yet) could ever work? The only system that works is the one that encourages greed, corruption, and selfishness and is the cause for much of the destruction of the environment and even the cause for so many people that go without food simply because they don't have any worthless artificial currency that only limits the amount of resources that can be consumed? The same system that is keeping things that are in an infinite quantity from being distributed freely (software)? Capitalism may be better than some other systems, but it is far from the 'best', and is no be-all end-all system.