Unit 7

This week the unit was one of academic breadth and depth. We studied colonialism and the spread of ideas. Unlike some of my classmates I swing a little both ways on this issue. I understand and accept that societies should be respected as they are. There cultural norms and religious practices are a part of who they are and western mores should not be forced upon indigenous populations by their colonial overlords.

But, some of the information spread was of value and should be welcomed with open arms. Especially matters of technological advances and everything that comes with it. Technological advances spread because they accomplish their ends better than they way they were done before....think of farming, before the tractor and after the tractor. The tractor was a technological advancement that provided more food for less labor, allowing more people access to food and the farmer more time to spend pursuing his or her own interests beyond sustenance farming. Yes,,,the tractor and it's use will eventually change the farming culture which adopted it's use. Yes, as different cultures adapt to mechanized farming techniques they begin to loose something of their own tribal farming culture and adopt something, not everything, of the broader mechanized farming culture worldwide. We homogenize...and that's a good thing.

Technological advances are, for the most part, good things. Yes, they change the societies that adopt them and farming communities that use mechanized farming begin to resemble one another more than they resemble similar cultures which do not, and that's okay. We should not be afraid to adapt what's more effective, better, stronger, faster...even if it changes or society. Because, in the long run it's good for society (Mechanized Farming-more food, more leisure time, etc).

Trucks vs Yak cart-Trucks win, Computers vs Abacus-Computers win, and so on and so forth. The tragedy for Africa, South America and such is that most of the advances we have discussed are Western in origin and western society has already been transformed by these innovations. So when they begin to use these advances themselves they appear to be adopting western norms, when in reality they aer not adapting to "western norms...just following down the trans formative path as did the people of the west before them.

All this is a good thing and the sooner we are homogenized as a species the less likely the chance we will destroy one another.