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| kojax |
 Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 12:47 am Post subject: Is cultural diversity really so valuable? |
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Forum Ph.D.
Joined: 27 Mar 2007
Posts: 1070
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I've had this question on my mind for a while. My general perspective is that the value of a culture or its cultural values is reflected in the ability of the people in it to do impressive things, especially economically.
Japan, for example, has always exhibited an amazing ability to assimilate foreign technologies and make practical use of them without needed a whole lot of time to adjust.
On the other hand, a lot of Arabic culture seems to be willing to kill rather than adopt any new ideas they themselves didn't invent or think of. Islam's general hatred/disregard of other cultures has lead in the past to things like the defacement of the Great Pyramid, or more recently a very old, large, statue of Bhuddah was torn down in Afghanistan. (Then again, it was Napolean's army that used the Sphinx for target practice, so Western Europe has some questions to answer too....)
This question kind of began for me when I learned Spanish and started working with Hispanic people. All the mystery about why Mexico is so poor started to melt away when I saw how a typical Mexican approaches certain kinds of problems. I used to think it was so awful that we didn't let them keep their culture when they came up here, and now I wish we'd make them all either become entirely Americanized or leave.
It leaves open a few questions:
1) - Is it preferable to demand that people culturally assimilate when they try to become citizens in a new country?
2) - Can outright genocide sometimes be justified, or at least considered a "lesser of two evils" sometimes?
3) - Does every culture have an inherent "right" to exist, even really counter productive ones?
4) - Is it preferable to have as many different cultures as possible, or as few as possible, or is there a balance?
5) - Is there an absolute standard by which we can judge which cultures are better and which cultures are worse? (Perhaps things like their ability or inability to bring prosperity to the people within them?) |
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| Ophiolite |
| Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 3:05 am Post subject: Re: Is cultural diversity really so valuable? |
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Forum Radioactive Isotope
Joined: 25 Jul 2005
Posts: 4804
Location: Scotland
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| kojax wrote: |
| I've had this question on my mind for a while. My general perspective is that the value of a culture or its cultural values is reflected in the ability of the people in it to do impressive things, especially economically. |
I've highlighted the problem with your argument. It lies in this premise that the function of a culture is to be economically productive.
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The Universe is not only weirder than we imagine it is weirder than we can imagine. J.B.S.Haldane. |
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| KALSTER |
| Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 4:45 am Post subject: |
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Forum Cosmic Wizard
Joined: 08 Sep 2007
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Location: South Africa
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It leaves open a few questions:
1) - Is it preferable to demand that people culturally assimilate when they try to become citizens in a new country?
They should have a choice of course. The country allowed them to enter the country and did not spell out that they should conform to the prevalent culture, nor does any government agency exist that is supposed to police it.
2) - Can outright genocide sometimes be justified, or at least considered a "lesser of two evils" sometimes?
I can't think of any situation where that could even remotely be considered an option.
3) - Does every culture have an inherent "right" to exist, even really counter productive ones?
As long as they don't infringe on other cultures to the tune of breaking the law.
4) - Is it preferable to have as many different cultures as possible, or as few as possible, or is there a balance?
I'd say more is good. It is really dangerous, I think, for only one viewpoint on various issues to exist. We can and should learn from each other.
5) - Is there an absolute standard by which we can judge which cultures are better and which cultures are worse? (Perhaps things like their ability or inability to bring prosperity to the people within them?)
It becomes difficult, since the factors involved mostly include religious aspects. One has to think about what exactly constitutes human rights (a default skeleton moral set) and then what violates it.
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As jy dom is, moet jy kak.
Last edited by KALSTER on Fri Jun 13, 2008 4:47 am; edited 1 time in total |
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| kojax |
| Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2008 9:09 am Post subject: Re: Is cultural diversity really so valuable? |
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Forum Ph.D.
Joined: 27 Mar 2007
Posts: 1070
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| Ophiolite wrote: |
| kojax wrote: |
| I've had this question on my mind for a while. My general perspective is that the value of a culture or its cultural values is reflected in the ability of the people in it to do impressive things, especially economically. |
I've highlighted the problem with your argument. It lies in this premise that the function of a culture is to be economically productive. |
Perhaps we see the concept of economic benefit differently. Nearly every utopia I've ever seen described has a common element to it : no expense is ever spared, because no expense ever has to be.
To me, economics isn't about whether I can afford an extra I-pod, or a gas guzzling SUV. It's based on what I see in the third world, where it tends to make the difference between whether a child eats or not, or gets to go to school. It's in such situations that I tend to see economics as the only consideration worthy of interest.
There's a concept that I think they call "maslow's pyramid" that kind of explains what I mean.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs
Non-economic concerns become important only to people who've fullfilled their basic needs, and tend to become increasingly important the more fully those needs have been satisfied.
However, until every man, woman, and child on Earth eats, I'm not interested in moving up the pyramid. They're human beings too, and I guess I see something wrong with moving on up they pyramid while they're still there at the bottom. |
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