On the contrary, I feel special knowing that my ancestors were able to survive the evolutionary process and achieved sentience while many others died.
Think of it this way.
Say that you are a member of the French aristocracy. Would you have been more proud if your father wasn't an aristocrat and that he had to work really hard to get the family the title OR that your family had always been an aristocratic family for as long as civilization itself?
For the first time in Earth's history, a species emerged from mere animals to building structures that lasted thousands of years. This species was able to use tools on a level that no other species had been able to. This species drew works of art on stone walls that depicted their culture and beliefs. In other words, they worked their way up to this point in time.
I don't know about you, but I am damn proud of what humanity have been able to achieve while many other species who we believe also achieved sentience but never survived to tell the tale.
When my family first came to the states, we were dirt poor and we were homeless. Heck, we were uneducated and we didn't know a word of English. Now, my oldest sister is an electrical engineer, my oldest brother is an architect, my older sister is a mathematician working for the government researching something about nuclear stuff... big secret (they actually sent federal agents to our house to ask question about her before they gave her access), and my older brother is a software engineer. I'm the spoiled one who is still in school.
Should I be ashamed that we had a very humble beginning and start believing that god gave us all what we achieved or should I be proud that we worked really hard to get where we are?
When I look at our species and what we have achieved (yes, the planet would have done better without us), I am always proud that we actually made it and not ended up extinct or still climbing trees and scratching each others'
ABE
But hey, if you'd rather deny your humble beginning and prefer to believe that all your most valuable possessions (knowledge and education) simply fell from the sky and landed on your head, more power to you! Some of us actually look back and feel proud of the hard work we have done.
Just curious, do you also believe that god built the pyramids and other wonders of the world as well? After all, we mere humans couldn't have built such magnificent structures, right?
This message has been edited by Jacen, 10-04-2005 11:26 PM