"Civilized to Death" - back to real life (audio)

Author Christopher Ryan, Phd. Civilized to Death, comedian-interviewer Jimmy Dore ("Jimmy Dore Show" at archive.kpfk.org, 5:00 PM, 11/29/19); Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Author Christopher Ryan interviewed by comedian Jimmy Dore: archive.kpfk.org

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Civilized to Death (Christopher Ryan)

The New York Times bestselling co-author of Sex at Dawn explores the ways in which “progress” has perverted the way we live: how we eat, learn, feel, mate, parent, communicate, work, and die.

Most of us have instinctive evidence this world is ending — warm winter days, face-to-face talking replaced by head-to-screen zombie behavior, USA in perpetual war with enemies it invents, dysfunctional politics.

We hear some myths and lies so frequently that they feel like truths: Civilization is humankind’s greatest accomplishment. Progress is undeniable. Count your blessings. You’re lucky to be alive here and now.

Life can be fun and easy!

Well, maybe we are and maybe we aren’t. Civilized to Death counters the idea that progress is inherently good, arguing that the “progress” defining our age is analogous to an advancing disease.

Prehistoric life, of course, was not without serious dangers and disadvantages. Many babies died in infancy. A broken bone, infected wound, snakebite, or difficult pregnancy could be life-threatening.

Sex at Dawn (Ryan)

But ultimately, Ryan argues, were these pre-civilized dangers more murderous than modern scourges, such as car accidents, cancers, cardiovascular disease, and a technologically-prolonged dying process?

At a time when our ecology, our society, and our own sense of self feels increasingly imperiled, an accurate understanding of our species’ long prelude to civilization is vital to a clear sense of the ultimate value of civilization — and its costs.

Your Country is Just NOT That Into You

In Civilized to Death, Ryan makes the claim that we should start looking backwards to find our way to a better future. More

• “Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern Relationships challenges conventional wisdom about sex in a big way. By examining the prehistoric origins of human sexual behavior, the authors are able to expose the fallacies and weaknesses of standard theories proposed by most experts....” — Dr. Andrew Weil, M.D.