this post was submitted on 17 Sep 2025
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How do you know it's "due to slavery and violence" rather then "despite slavery and violence"? It seems more likely to me that civilisation is rooted in cooperation and solidarity, while slavery and violence is a cancer that grows on top of it, and hurts almost everyone involved.
List an example of a civilization that was not build by force and labour extraction from the under class.
Cooperation was achieved at a gun point. There is no solidarity even in communist regimes.
You are talking about civilizations, but it seems to me that a more appropriate word would be "empires", which in a sense is an antithesis of "civilization". Most people around the world don't have imperial aspirations, and yet they do live in civilized societies. That extends to most governments, today and historically. Perhaps peaceful societies leave less footprint. Empires need a lot of propaganda to justify their antisocial actions - things like monuments, colossal architecture, anthems, heroic poems. Naturally their spectacular violence attracts more of our attention. But I don't think imperialism was ever a norm.
That's an assertion without any merit. Especially in oppressive regimes solidarity is what keeps society together. I understand that you are writing from USA, so I don't blame you for this dark and cynical worldview. My impression from a safe distance is that breaking of basic and natural solidarity and voluntary cooperation is an intentional effort of a tiny class of imperialists in your country. They want you cynical, hopeless and alienated. Don't give up the hope!
I am using the term civilization in classic history context:
Surplus food supply, specialization and division of labour, political power structures and infrastructure, standing armies.
You are using in terms of social democracies like nordics
But even that context, social democracies are just another regime that's rooted in the state having monopoly on violence that it is used to protect property of the owner class.
They just happen to treat their in group decently. But even that's now eroding.