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Warriors and Companions
Part of growing up human was discovering what their world was
really like, then learning that it is best to remain silent about it.
Better to dream of a loving world than to dwell on the sad, sad
truth.
Humans couldn't have a society that was honest, fair, free and warm. If somehow given such a world, it would quickly fragment. In their rush to take the biggest piece, warriors would destroy their paradise without ever knowing they had one.
A pelican once landed among humans at a seaside dock, its feet tangled in fishing line. That bird knew a human would recognize its plight and gently cut the line away from its feet. Sure enough, someone did. You don't need to take my word that there was kindness in humans; take the bird's.
The canine has a mixture of many natural behaviors. The same basic animal can be morphed into a vicious killer or the sweetest companion. Neither behavior — savagery or affection — is good or bad, except as we see it. Nature holds no values. Expression of behaviors adapts to circumstances related to survival. Natural selection in the wild produces wolves, whereas breeder selection produces companions.
Humans, too, have many natural behaviors, with expression continually adapting for survival. We are every bit as malleable as the canines and can be bred to be companions or warriors.
The word dodo is synonymous with stupid. The dodo was a species of flightless bird with no natural fear of humans. They were also good to eat, and humans ate them all. We blame their misfortune on the birds themselves; any creature stupid enough to be so trusting deserved to be clubbed to extinction.
A warrior would be terrified by the notion of being bred for kindness because that would mean being a dodo. Or so he fears. He's "a lion, not a lamb," he says. But kindness does not mean vulnerability. A household pet in a fight to the death with a wolf might get the worst of it, but not for lack of spine. And a kind, sweet mite can stand up to a gladiator-sized warrior. The mite wouldn't win a sword fight but has a strong advantage in a gunfight. The half-sized mite makes a smaller target, moves like an acrobat, slips through terrain easily, and takes cover in smaller spaces. Pound for pound mites are twice as strong as humans, and much more agile. David brought down Goliath with a rock and a sling.
If humans had lived to see it, they would have been astonished by their capacity to be bred for good-heartedness and the lasting civilization they could have had.
The story continues here.
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Copyright (c) 2024 by Don Knight
Humans couldn't have a society that was honest, fair, free and warm. If somehow given such a world, it would quickly fragment. In their rush to take the biggest piece, warriors would destroy their paradise without ever knowing they had one.
A pelican once landed among humans at a seaside dock, its feet tangled in fishing line. That bird knew a human would recognize its plight and gently cut the line away from its feet. Sure enough, someone did. You don't need to take my word that there was kindness in humans; take the bird's.
The canine has a mixture of many natural behaviors. The same basic animal can be morphed into a vicious killer or the sweetest companion. Neither behavior — savagery or affection — is good or bad, except as we see it. Nature holds no values. Expression of behaviors adapts to circumstances related to survival. Natural selection in the wild produces wolves, whereas breeder selection produces companions.
Humans, too, have many natural behaviors, with expression continually adapting for survival. We are every bit as malleable as the canines and can be bred to be companions or warriors.
The word dodo is synonymous with stupid. The dodo was a species of flightless bird with no natural fear of humans. They were also good to eat, and humans ate them all. We blame their misfortune on the birds themselves; any creature stupid enough to be so trusting deserved to be clubbed to extinction.
A warrior would be terrified by the notion of being bred for kindness because that would mean being a dodo. Or so he fears. He's "a lion, not a lamb," he says. But kindness does not mean vulnerability. A household pet in a fight to the death with a wolf might get the worst of it, but not for lack of spine. And a kind, sweet mite can stand up to a gladiator-sized warrior. The mite wouldn't win a sword fight but has a strong advantage in a gunfight. The half-sized mite makes a smaller target, moves like an acrobat, slips through terrain easily, and takes cover in smaller spaces. Pound for pound mites are twice as strong as humans, and much more agile. David brought down Goliath with a rock and a sling.
If humans had lived to see it, they would have been astonished by their capacity to be bred for good-heartedness and the lasting civilization they could have had.
The story continues here.
Home | Creation Story | Warriors | Honesty | Limits | Class | Gender | Religion | Sexuality | Countries | Stewardship | Author | Contact
Copyright (c) 2024 by Don Knight
The canine has a mixture of
many natural behaviors. The
same basic animal can be
morphed into a vicious killer or
the kindest companion.
We, too, can be morphed
into warriors or
companions.
Warriors would destroy
their paradise without ever
knowing they had one.