NorthOfNorth wrote on Apr 26
th, 2016 at 9:00pm:
freediver wrote on Apr 26
th, 2016 at 12:48pm:
Where I think Christiantiy did play a role was the absence of slavery in Eruope from the fall of the Roman Empire (with the exception of the incursion of the Islamic Caliphate). British and even Spanish leaders were motivated by Christianity to abolish slavery in the new world, and eventually succeeded. There was even a conscious effort to abolish slavery in the middle east, which is not quite complete yet. Short-sighted critiques of this history often pretend that European powers caused the slavery. The reality is that slavery was the norm, both in the old and new world.
Yes, slavery is redundant when a class system creates its own unique brand of slavery - serfdom...
Australia (or should I say the British in Australia) exploited its own unique brand of slavery... Convicts.
Its modern, 'democratic' incarnation? Illegal immigrants!
As Barry Humphreys had Dame Edna quip, "Illegal immigration... Democracy's answer to slavery".
There is a fundamental difference. When plagues created a labour shortage in Europe, those 'serfs' were able to move around and get higher paying jobs. It was the start of a free market in human labour. Without it, the emergence of today's civilised society from Western Europe would not have happened. The slave owners would have simply pocketed the increased value of their salves as they sold them to the highest bidder.
The latte socialists who try to equate what they don't like in the world today with the genuine slavery of the past are destroying one of history's most important lessons, and celebrating their own ignorance.
Quote:Yes, FD, but a pity you missed the part of history where the Christians ramped up slavery to industrial levels unprecedented even in the ancient world.
No Karnal, I addressed it fairly openly, but then you would have to read the post to realise, wouldn't you?