What I was pointing out with those quotes was the importance of having the attitude that an integrated solution is possible for all problems, and that a culture that fosters and promotes artistic thinking is a culture that fosters and promotes such an attitude.

That is, that the reason for supporting the arts is not necessarily the arts themselves, but the attitude that the presence of the arts creates in the society.

But really though, I think it has a lot to do with how long Japanese Culture has had agriculture, how self-domesticated they are. They tend to be non-violent also and undersexed.

So think about a really red blooded people, with lots of testosterone pumping through their veins. You know like these Arab guys with 5’0clock shadow at noon, carrying guns around wherever they go and covering the women up and making them stay at home. Is it all just based on philosophy? I mean is Sharia law “holding them back” or does it fit their physiology some how?

Think of Africa and how Islam is spreading there. Islam is probably a step up from animism, but backwards in relation to Advanced Western Democracies. Maybe cultures “grow up” in order to die out. You know, like how Europeans are so mature that they don’t reproduce?

America is a big melting pot with a lot of cold hard lumps. But what is the point of it all anyway? Is it just to produce a class of people how can have the time and resources to seek enlightenment? Is that the point?

I have a feeling that Arab muslim countries are the exact opposite on both counts.

That’s the sign of a mature culture? I must be missing something.