Germs

I'm reading "Guns, Germs, and Steel" by Jared Diamond. It got a Pulitizer Prize. I think I expected something a bit more exciting. It's more of a chore to read as I have borrowed it from the library on a "Fast Read" basis which means I have to get it back to them in 7 days. I can't read 440 pages in seven days. I'm a relatively slow reader. I read at the speed I would read aloud. For maximum comprehension, I guess.

What I have taken from this so far is that giant animals once roamed the earth right, mammoths, I'm sure you've heard of them. Giant lemurs and marsupial leopards etc. All these animals became extinct because we killed them all. That's safer for us, I suppose, but what I'm thinking is that we have been murdering bastards since the beginning of our time. It would seem we kill anything we are unsure of. It's instinctual. If it's bigger than you and unfamiliar, club it to death. I assumed before that murdering one another was more of a recent thing that was related to the increased complexity of the world. I thought that the modern situation of more to fight over, more knowledge of one another, increased territorial behaviour with less open uncharterd space was responsible for all the violence. When you assume you make an ass out of U and ME.

Other interesting info from the book (I cannot call it absolute fact): More New World aboriginals were killed by germs than by invaders. I did not know that.

I should get back to that book. It must get more exciting when we start making things out of steel.