Waterman121 wrote:
> Hello Mr Xenakis, The GD theory proposes that conflicts tend to
> develop into crises, wars, and atrocities once the surviving older
> generation has passed away. Does a rising average human lifespan
> impact this cycle? One might expect that the number of years
> between crisis-level events would depend on how long the surviving
> generation is around. Are the cycles in, say, the 16th century any
> shorter than in the last 100 years?
No, the average human lifespan is irrelevant, since the average is
mostly determined by child mortality. What's important is the maximum
effective human lifespan, and that's been around 75-80 years for
millennia.
Waterman121 wrote:
> Secondly, does the ability to record information in the form of
> writing, the Internet, etc. have any impact on younger
> generations?
No. Generational attitudes and behaviors are spread by ordinary
human relationships, not by Twitter.
Waterman121 wrote:
> Finally, in what way does the older generation prevent conflicts
> from becoming crisis-level wars? Thank you very much.
The Kenya article provides a very good example. Kalenjin politicians
are apparently inciting herders to violence. That would never have
happened in 2008, because Kalenjin politicians would still have been
people who had survived the Mau-Mau rebellion. But now it's the
younger generations who are running things, inciting a violence
that could lead to a massive war.