Skepdick wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 11:56 am
RCSaunders wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 1:06 am
Not sure I understand any more about what you mean by humanity, but thanks for the answer anyway.
If you could tell me where your misunderstanding lies, then I could try and clarify for you.
I still do not understand what you mean by humanity. Are you referring to a particular species of animal or to the collection of such animals as some kind of thing? When you say, "I value humanity more than I value my individuality," I don't know if that means the future of humanity, all of the human beings that ever have or ever will live, or some segment of that you value.
When you wrote: "I stand on the shoulders of giants - humanity," that sounds like a small segment of human beings only including those who made the discoveries and developed the technologies and methods that have improved the human condition, only a handful of human beings, less than .1%.
When you wrote: "I know what I know thanks to humanity," I'm sure you know more than the average human being, and could not have learned what you know from those who know less than you, so they would not be included in humanity.
When you wrote: "I am who I am thanks to humanity," since you certainly could not be influenced by the entire race, those that made you what your are includes only a tiny part of humanity.
And I actually have no idea what, "Some of the choices available to me in 2020 were not available to anybody in 1950 - thanks to humanity," means since many of the choices available to you in 1950 are no longer available to you in 2020. Things change. Try finding a job in a leather factory, writing programs in fortran, repairing any electronics using tube technology, or owning a home and raising a family on a single income.
So, by humanity do you mean only that small number of human beings that were giants, that you learned from, and influenced you?
Or do you mean all human beings, including every tyrant, murderer, thief, rapist, drug addict, drunk, and thug? What about that part of humanity that promoted (and still promotes) slavery, or has slaves today. What about that part of humanity that participates in sex trafficking, especially of children. What about that part of humanity that practices genocide, or terrorism, or periodic slaughters of innocents, like Boko Haram? Do you value them more than your own individual life?
If you mean by humanity the future of the human species (which some people do), the question is, if some catastrophe should wipe out the human species tomorrow, what difference would it make, and to whom?
I'm not making any judgments here. Just looking for clarification.