littlejimmy

Hmm. When you watch that Dream School with Jamie Oliver or stuff like The X Factor, Big Brother and Whatever That Plastic Bitch Did Next, you do have to wonder if we are at the pinnacle of civilisation/culture.

Norm_uk

I haven't seen any of those shows and feel pity on people who think that is all their culture has to offer.

I was thinking more in terms of inventions with the widest benefits, peer reviewed scientific papers written, variety of books written and/or translated, literature, academic freedom and art. And when you look at that way only the West as a whole and Far East really contribute significantly to the betterment of humanity...still if Big Brother is more famous than Norman Borlaug, Wei Boyang, Donald Davies, Isembard Kingdom-Brunel, Mozart, Confucius, Brunel, Frank Whittle, Voltaire, Shen Nong, Kant, John Tyndall and Socrates then that's a more a sign of plebian culture having a wider audience than anything else...and that's generally always been the case. The masses are slow to know the work of people who have changed their lives for the better and quick to know who the best sportsman or entertainer is.

N.