Journal entry 36: July 3rd 2120
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I found out what the "Centaur Club" means. I heard a draftee named London, with less than two months left on his tour of duty, lecturing some of the new male draftees. In greek mythology the centaurs were half human and half horse creatures, usually depicted as violent barbarians. London went into how the belief in centaurs came about. Before Greece was a loose collection of city states it was made up of nomadic tribe that fought and killed each other for scarce resources. Some tribes learned how to domesticate horses and use them in warfare before others. Those who had never seen horses used like this believed that horse and rider were the same creature, thus the belief in centaurs. And these "centaurs" were slaughtering their enemies, leaving few if any survivors. Thus those who created the myth of centaurs didn't have much reason to speak highly of them. This is also why greek mythology has few if any female centaurs. Centuries later the ancient philosophers Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, as well as the individuals who created democracy and laid very early foundations for human rights, truley believed that their country had once been home to half human half horse creatures. They might have considered these centaurs to be violent barbarians, probably unaware that their ancestors were the original centaurs. London in his lecture said to his group that the ancient philosophers only got to invent democracy because their ancestors did horrible brutal things to gain resources, so that their descendants wouldn't have to worry as much about survival. This is why individuals like London tell their groups that they must do whatever it takes to insure the survival of our species. This makes me nervous. Tomorrow is a holiday, my mother promised to try and come up to see me. I hope she does because, after hearing London's lecture, I really want my mommy.