WW Chapter 16: Evolution of God's Job Description

I like how the chapter begins by drawing a comparison between the intelligent design/evolution controversy that we had a few years back in schools here in the US. It helps to emphasize the fact that controversies surrounding religion that we read about in chapter 16's description of events such as the protestant reformation, are relevant today.

I especially liked reading about the early scientists who challenged religion's view of the world. Reading about Copernicus, Galileo, and Descartes made me think of the famous Nietzsche quote: "God is dead, we killed him". The ideas presented by Copernicus regarding astronomy really challenged the church's infallibility. The bible has sections which clearly suggest that the earth is still and other planets move around it, and for the bible to be wrong when taken in it's literal translation is a concept that was not tolerated at the time. Galileo was the person who made it so difficult to cast reasonable doubt on Copernicus's theory, as his invention of the telescope allowed people to plainly see and diagram the movement of the planets and ultimately determine, through reason, that the earth was not the center of our galaxy, but actually had an orbit and a spin.

This scientific revolution was, in my opinion, ultimately more important that the protestant reformation or other such challenges to the church, because it's arguments were not against the bible or for another interpretation of it, they had nothing to do with it. They did not even need to address it, only to say that the bible was not necessary to understand the world around you, only your own human faculties of observation and deduction.

I would say that Darwin ultimately dealt the death-blow to the God that had existed up until the scientific revolution. That God had been in charge of everything, however the likes of Galileo, Descartes, and Newton had come and shown that everyday events could be shown to be the result of fundamental scientific principles and not acts of God. So that left God with the sole job of having created everything, including us. Then Darwin comes along and shows that God didn't play a role in that either, and that we evolved (as did every other living thing) also along a set of scientific principles.

From then on, God has had a harder time staying relevant in the world. Today his job description for many people is limited to mostly the spiritual side of human existence and what happens to us after we die. I guess the job market is just tough for everybody right now.

Chapter 15: Commerce Goes Global

The centuries from 1450 to 1750 saw a tremendous boom in the globalization of numerous trade endeavors between many countries. Far from being a golden era of achievement, however, it became a time when more developed nations used their might to exploit those they encountered who were not as strong. The Portuguese and the Spanish strove to obtain vast amounts of riches from the East. The Spanish ended up invading the Philippines in this vain, and it paid off (for the Spanish, not so much for the natives) by proving to be a major destination for all the Silver that Spain had managed to round up from around the world. It was this drive for the acquisition of silver, along with the spice trade that really encouraged this globalization of trade. It was during this time that Chinese goods also began to be traded with increasing frequency, even at one point causing the French to pass legislation to deter it's citizens from using fabric made in China (it is interesting to see that even then, France was big on protecting the rights of it's work-force). However, other peoples did not find their rights protected as they found themselves being treated as a commodity in the developing slave-trade. The Atlantic slave trade in particular, which "took an estimated 11 million people from African societies, shipped them across the Atlantic...[and] deposited them in the Americas, where they lived out their often brief lives as slaves" is truly a dark blemish on the history of the world and of this nation.

Discovering Global Past Ch. 4 and Ways of the World Ch 14

Ways of the World speaks, in chapter 14, of the maritime expansion of Europe (which was a unique phenomenon). By the mid-18th century, the Europeans had extended their empires throughout most of the Americas. It goes on to discuss the many developments which took place there, including the enslavement of the Aztecs and the Incas (as well as the bustling cities which were developed on their land) and the importance of the American foods crops in providing nourishment to the ever-growing population of Europeans. It goes on to discuss another important crop: sugar. It is used for a variety of things from a medicine, to a sweetener, to a preservative. However, this crop came with a dire cost, as the deadly conditions those who were forced to produce it had to endure resulted in a 5-10 percent fatality rate. Other Empire also began to rise around this time, such as the Russian Empire and the Mughal Empire.

Discovering Global Past talks, in chapter 4, about sugar in even more detail. Although cheap now, at the time, sugar was actually extremely expensive and valuable. It also continued to describe the harsh conditions needed to prepare commercial sugar. This led to the necessity of forced labor in order to make it a viable business.To this day, I can think of many jobs which are relegated to those without education or other options that no one else would willfully engage in due to the working conditions. It is interesting how technology has both the promise of eliminating the need for humans to do a lot of menial labor, but at the same time it often comes (as sugar did) with a whole new set of pitfalls for humans.

MLK Day

Anyone who has not watched MLK's I have a Dream speech in it's entirety absolutely should. It is only 15 minutes long and yet is an amazing example of oratory abillity and speechwriting. Here is a link to it on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbUtL_0vAJk
I have to say, that I think my favorite part is when he speaks of a promissory note that America has written to the negro people (the promise of liberty, freedom, and equality) but when they went to cash it, it came back insufficient funds. It is such a visceral image that resonates with pretty much everyone, and yet is very clever and poignant in it's critique of America's unequal treatment of minorities.



I also re-read his Letter from Birmingham Jail, which is (in my opinion) the perfect combination of rhetoric and logic. It is amazing that he was able to craft such an impressive piece of writing on scraps of paper in a jail cell. It can be found here: http://abacus.bates.edu/admin/offices/dos/mlk/letter.html

In writing to ministers, he was careful to use biblical examples to both refute arguments against him leveled by the ministers, and also to show them that he, too, has a strong religious education. My favorite quote has to be: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

Other pieces I particularly liked were:

"Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half-truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, we must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood."

"Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will."
-a great statement against those whites who said that they agreed with MLK in principle, but not in action.

Lastly, I liked his reference to "days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. "

San Jose Mercury News Article re: Modern Day Sex Slavery

My thoughts on the article:

It is very depressing to think that the sex trade is still so prevalent in many parts of the world such as Vietnam. I would have to say though, that the sex trade is really no more shocking that the mere description of the day-to-day living conditions of many in Vietnam:


"Though Vietnam boasts a literacy rate of about 90 percent, many of the residents in this community have little or no education. They spend their days and nights picking through heaps of garbage for recyclable materials, such as plastic and metal. Children, barefoot and barely clothed, play amid the foul-smelling waste....On a recent morning, 23-year-old Kim Thi Mau sorted dirty plastic bags. Last year, her 4-year-old son Lam drowned when he fell in a ditch filled with water while she and her husband worked nearby. She has two other sons, 20 months and 4 months old."

These conditions not only create an environment in which sex trafficking is more likely to occur (do to the desperation of the people and the lack of resources to fight it), but it also serves to make it not even stand out from the backdrop of suffering that comes to be considered normal.

And so it begins...

My history blog.