I'd really like it if this thread didn't devolve into another 'X Religion VS Islam: Which killed more people, plants and cute furry animals?' thing.
Machiavelli also tells you how to take over a country in his times and that it's better to be feared than to be loved.
But anyway, yeah, that is correct. Didn't Neitzche also say something about this sort of thing? The Eternal Return of the Same or something?
In common English the principle can be understood, somewhat more crudely, as: 'Same *BEEP*, different day'.
My own personal view on the matter is that existence is continuous adaptation, rather than regression. Time moves faster if you're standing still, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't learn from the past. On the other hand, what worked in the past won't necessarily work in the present or the future, because each individual has different tastes, which influence and inform their decisions and reactions (this is why heated political debates are so hysterically pointless).
However, I believe there are core values (call them morals, ethics or whatever you like) that govern all humans to an extent. Different cultures or religions simply accenuate certain of these values over others, just as different people will naturally do according to their own life experience. I'm not going to argue the rights or wrongs of this, I'm just stating how I see things.
As to Britain being in moral decline - there seems to be
something wrong, what with all the ineffective ASBO's (and destructively unruly chavs in general
), binge drinking, overcrowded prisons, terrorism etc. I dunno. Maybe I'm just naming moral panics constant throughout history. Funny thing, perception.
I'd also say that religion can indeed foster moral codes. Equally important is the presence of parental figures for children, if at all possible. A lot of kids go wrong because they lack either a father or mother figure to show them the way. I know life ain't perfect, or fair, but there it is.
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