[ExI] BBC Easter Island documentary

[spike]

>. On Behalf Of Alfio Puglisi
.

 

>.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.Alfio

 

 

 

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."

 

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.

 

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.

 

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.

 

spike

 

 

 

 

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