Curious Mammal

Every philosophy of society begins with an idea of human nature. Are we good? Bad? Evil? Perverted? What is it? This concept is the foundation of all major philosophies that have ever existed. Lao Tzu used the metaphor that we were a glorious mountain, good in nature, but that the growth of society ( i.e. tress, buildings, etc) covered our deeper nature, made us look evil. Hobbesian thought picked us as a weak and childish race that needed to be governed by a strong father, or a strong monarchy. This thought justified the better part of our history. Only recently have we broken away from this thought and have deemed human nature to be neither good nor bad but "the best that we can get." Given enough space and left alone to our devices, we will figure it out on our own. This type of thought is what has led to our present system of Capitalism. The philosophy that underpins our present "natural" order is one that stems from John Locke and Adam Smith. Both believed that...

Definitions for the West: "West is most commonly a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography." "the countries of (originally) Europe and (now including) North America and South America" "the region of the United States lying to the west of the Mississippi River" "a location in the western part of a country, region, or city" "the West originated in the northern and eastern Mediterranean with ancient Greece and ancient Rome . Over time, their associated empires grew first to the east and south, conquering and absorbing many older great civilizations; later, they grew to the north and west to include Western Europe ." "The exact scope of the West is somewhat subjective in nature, depending on whether cultural, economic, spiritual or political criteria are employed." In regards to the American West there really is no consensus on a place, region, state of mind, or exact end of the West. Some put ...

Indian Imagining It was widely thought, for a long time, that Native Americans were a static bunch. Whites viewed them as living in a permanent primitive state, not changing their culture, not advancing socially, or innovating and using their environment in any useful form, besides ancient traditions. To the contrary, Indians were some of the most ambitious and imaginative people in the West. Their adaptive ability to new technology and willingness to uproot their entire lifestyle shows how really imaginative they really are. But like all imagination there were many unseen consequences to their actions. Below are several different adaptations and their unseen consequences. Horses- Centuries before Americans would sweep through the plains, Native Americans saw the introduction of horses with great imagination and awe. They immediately saw the usefulness of such a tamed beast and went to work immediately. They were able to use the fuel source of the plains, grasses, ...

The discoveries of gold along the Eastern Rockies had four major impacts that would reshape the United States. Earlier settlement was sporadic and temporary at best. If someone settled it usually was a singular act and one that didn't have tremendous impact on surrounding vegetation or peoples; and it certainly didn't have any impact back east. However, when verified gold deposits were found it didn't take long to get the attention of others abroad. Those discoveries had four major consequences. One No one was going anywhere. If I put an advertisement on craigslist for free gold, found in my backyard, not only would I have half of San Diego at my house, but they wouldn't be leaving any time soon, especially if it was true. No, once gold was found whites weren't going anywhere. The belief in riches, especially during an economic downturn, ensured that whites were here to stay. Two With confirmed white settlement the nature of the operations and activities wer...

It is well documented, and has been recklessly portrayed, that Americans clashed with violent Native Americans and triumphed. Though recent scholarship has painted the American- Indian encounters more truthfully (i.e. Indian slaughter, misleading peace accords, etc) they still fail to point out the events that led to such encounters. The initial story, however mundane, is one of a failing culture, unable to adapt to quickly changing conditions, losing a way of life that served them well for many centuries. With no good options to resort to Native Americans, whether violent or passive in later years, met the same end eventually. Native Americans adopted the use of horses when they were first introduced to them by Europeans. Immediately seeing the potential of the animals, the power they possessed and could access, Native Americans used their power to conquer the plains. Using horses allowed Indians to cover greater distances, see approaching enemies and game in the tall plains grass...