Cavemen

[snowman]

I wonder why there are so many people in this world still living like they are in the stone age. Or in other words, just like cavemen.

There is much of Africa.

There is the middle east.

There are the Indians in the USA.

There is 3/4 of China.

There is much of South east Asia

There is a lot of people in Mexico and South America.


Has the world really evolved beyond the stone age? Why do these people still exist?

The stone age people and Cavemen are about the same. They use stone implements, they live in mud huts or caves, they are subsistence farmers and or hunter gathers. They cannot adequately feed themselves, let alone others.

Are they living proof of he missing link?

Just wondering....

[Won]

Wow, so you really think much of Africa, middle east, native indians, 3/4 of China, much of South East Asia and "a lot" of people in Mexico and South America live like cavemen with stone tools?

Maybe you should get out more, or read a book for a change.

[M.D. Holloway]

The world is an incredible place isn't it? rich in all sorts of cultures and societies! It is truely a garden with all sorts of varities adding to the beauty.

I'm sure if given the opportunity and chance to have a Honda, a widescreen and a lawn they would jump at it - oh ya, it would help to learn how to read and write as well.

Then again, do we really have it better? does the fact that we have all these creature comforts and toys and our thoughts make us that much better or more evolved? Most of these "cavenmen" live everyday to just to survive. How many of these "cavemen" ruin the forest, desert, jungle they need to survive?

Makes me wonder who really knows the true meaning of life. Is the meaning of life to influence and change your environs to make life more comfortable or is the meaning of life nothing more then living? Just living. Think about it.

[Danny_Ocean]

I live in a mud hut...

[snowman]

Those cavemen do more damage to the environment than any modern man. If we all lived that way we would not only be starving, but the world would be an absolute cesspool.

I do get out a lot, and thats how I know there are a lot of cavemen living in the world today.

[snowman]

Originally Posted by Danny_Ocean

I live in a mud hut...

Sorry to here that. You helped me make my point.

[M.D. Holloway]

Originally Posted by snowman

Those cavemen do more damage to the environment than any modern man. If we all lived that way we would not only be starving, but the world would be an absolute cesspool.

I do get out a lot, and thats how I know there are a lot of cavemen living in the world today.

OK, I'll take that bait. I don't get out as much as you I guess. Please teach me. I have an open mind and am willing to entertain new ideas. What tribes, societies and cultures that live off the land are the ones you are talking about? Besides human waste and some ashes, what energy do they consume, what by-products do they emmit, what things do they throw away that take decades for the Earth to digest?

Now, add up your carbon foot print and pollution quotant?

[Dantilla]

I help support a villiage in Nicaragua.

They are growing crops, the biggest being shade-grown coffee. They are building simple houses. They just finished building a water system for the villiage.

Everything they are doing is sustainable.

While the land is rich, the political system they have suffered under for decades has prevented them from thriving. I was there. I met former Sandanistas working side-by-side with former Contras.

For the first time, they are able to purchase land, and provide adequately for their families. Their future is bright. While they have few material goods, they are happy. At least to this outsider, they appear more happy than many Americans.

No ipods, no video games, no cell phones, no teen angst. The kids work hard at school. Many of them, I suppose, will eventually end up living in Managua, a modern city.

I'm not sure what my point is, but I have no clue what yours is, either.

"living proof of the missing link"? Absolutely not! They are as intelligent as you or I. We just have the great privilege of living in the USA.

[snowman]

Then why are they still living in mud huts? Political oppression has been significant in every country in the world, yet these people are still cavemen! Why isn't the rest of the world in the same sorry condition?

The so called sustainable life lived by these tribes, if extended to the rest of the world would result in a calamity of sludge and pollution and lack of food that would result in starving most of the current population. Its a simple fact that is taught in 2nd or 3rd grade in good schools, never in present day govt schools.

[Dantilla]

Huh??

I really don't have a clue where you're going with this.

[island911]

I think that what he is trying to say is there are massive efficiencies of modern man. That there does indeed still exist a large portion of our population who live with very poor sanitation, education... Of course our education here consists of 'carbon footprint" as the earth-ending all-scary manbearpig. Yet, If our population had to live the simplistic style that so many seem to advocate, that we would be elbow deep in shiet.

[kstar]

At 2002, an estimated ~33% of the world's population, or around 2B people, had never used a phone; certainly this number has changed radically since, but it's still significant (see http://answers.google.com/answers/main?cmd=threadview&id=20411 )

---------------

From the 2008 World Bank Global Monitoring Report, At 2005 about 25% of the world's population, or 1.6B people, have no access to electricity.* From the same report:

The majority of these people live in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and East Asia and the Pacific. Data at the national level highlight some extreme cases: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mozambique have the highest percentage of population without access to electricity, at over 93 percent each.

*(290 page PDF report: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTGLOMONREP2008/Resources/4737994-1207342962709/8944_Web_PDF.pdf )

----------------

Below are some charts from the World Bank's 2007 Annual Report - the blue line is percentage of the population living under $1/day and the greenish line represents under $2/day:




Source: http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTABOUTUS/EXTANNREP/EXTANNREP2K7/0,,contentMDK:21507855~menuPK:4187926~pagePK:64168 445~piPK:64168309~theSitePK:4077916,00.html

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Now we have some stats, as Snowman asks, "why?"

FYI.

Best,

[Joeaksa]

Jack,

Sounds like you are back. When are we going to finish the deal on the Dillon press?

Joe

(who is just back from India and really wishes that they would institute massive birth control there. They simply have far too many people in that part of the world)

[kstar]

Some more stats, according to the 2008 World Bank report cited earlier:

[kstar]

How about World internet usage and penetration as of now?:



http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm

[kstar]

Finally, a picture of a really tiny teapot from China:



Goodnight folks!

Best,

[kstar]

One more thing. I'll take a stab at the "why" question posited by snowman, not listed in order of significance:

1) Rule of law, which is generally followed;
2) General freedom and liberty;
3) Capitalism/entrepreneurship; and
4) Ownership.

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by snowman

I wonder why there are so many people in this world still living like they are in the stone age. Or in other words, just like cavemen.

There is much of Africa.

There is the middle east.

There are the Indians in the USA.

There is 3/4 of China.

There is much of South east Asia

There is a lot of people in Mexico and South America.


Has the world really evolved beyond the stone age? Why do these people still exist?

The stone age people and Cavemen are about the same. They use stone implements, they live in mud huts or caves, they are subsistence farmers and or hunter gathers. They cannot adequately feed themselves, let alone others.

Are they living proof of he missing link?

Just wondering....

They want to live like cavemen. It's more fun eeking out an existence than living large on credit card debt. No worries about depreciation on the value of their cars and boats and RVs. No need to agonize over whether or not to save a few bucks hiring illegals to maintain their lawns. No pressure to have the largest McMansion or send their kids to private schools. I envy them.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by snowman

Then why are they still living in mud huts?

You're serious, aren't you. Wow.

Well, maybe in certain environments, mud huts are good houses. Maybe it's because mud is what they can afford. (no credit cards)

The so called sustainable life lived by these tribes, if extended to the rest of the world would result in a calamity of sludge and pollution and lack of food that would result in starving most of the current population.

Again, are you really serious about this statement? Good grief, yes, you are exactly correct. If you took the population of the world exactly as it is, and had some way to remove all electricity and fuel besides natural, collectible fuel (wood, dung, peat moss, etc...) from the world, it would quickly result in chaos and after we got done killing each other, lots of folks would starve to death. There would also be horrible pollution from human waste. In that highly unlikely scenario, you are exactly correct.

Of course, if we had never developed electricity or discovered and refined fossil fuels, I doubt we'd have cities like New York, LA, Tokyo, London in their current form, we also wouldn't have the population per area concentrations that we do these days, so if we had always lived these sustainable lifestyles, the world in some ways would be a much cleaner place with more remaining natural resources. We'd probably have a lot fewer people running around too. Basically, the world would be a radically different place than it is today, and your point would be moot.

You may as well pose another silly question for us thinking that you'll sound really impressive, "if all the metal in the world turned to jello, the world would collapse and there would be anarchy" It makes as much sense as your above assertion.

[Jim Richards]

What flavor of Jello are you suggesting?