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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>>…</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> <b>On Behalf Of </b>Alfio Puglisi<br><b><span style='color:#1F497D'>…</span></b></span><o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>>…</span>A few things are in direct conflict - for example, the gentle lowering of the statues claimed in the video, compared to the intentional breaking of them by toppling them over stone slabs as claimed in the book<span style='color:#1F497D'>…</span>Alfio<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>I wouldn’t be surprised if a modern-ish European did that perhaps 400 years ago. Reasoning: they would see the statues as idols, and take the example of the Old Testament Israelis, who made a habit of destroying a conquered civilization’s religious symbols. In a way analogous to how cannibalism is symbolic of total domination, the whole notion of smashing the other guy’s idol is a way of saying “See there, my God is more powerful than yours. Now you must worship mine.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>The European sailors would have had ropes and plenty of sturdy lads available to pull down those statues. They had the will and the means. That would explain if some of the statues were apparently intentionally broken and some not. About 400 years ago, sailing technology became sufficient to allow ships to wander all over the Pacific Ocean. A landing party of a few dozen guys, armed with muskets could have done the deed, and held off any non-firearm-enabled local opposition with ease.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>That means of conquest worked well in cases where the invading culture had more advanced technology then the local culture. Consider a culture with the habit of vesting a piece of carved stone with supernatural powers. The locals would know if you dance about and give its priests generous and expensive offerings, sometimes your relatives were healed, sometimes not, sometimes the rains would come, sometimes not. But these new guys have those tall ships which let them go out on the sea anywhere they want, and those bang sticks, which cause people and game to just fall dead, COOL! Let’s follow their God who must be so powerful and must have taught them how to do all this.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>The lesson is clear to moderns: if we want the world to be civilized (by our definition of the term rather than theirs) the way is to lead in science and technology. If we do that, then they will worship our idols willingly, rather than force us to worship theirs.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>spike<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></div></div></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></div></body></html>