Understanding the Stockgrower Perspective

Imagine you are a stockgrower who diligently cares for your cattle, ensuring they live comfortably until their destined day at the slaughterhouse.

One day, a cow gains the ability to comprehend your intentions and confronts you, saying, “I understand your plans. I will inform the others.”

What would you do in such a situation?

You would likely want to prevent the cow from spreading this awareness to avoid a rebellion that could jeopardize your livelihood. Even though the cows lack the education and resources to challenge your authority, you still prefer to keep them unaware of their fate to spare them from distress.

The Fermi Paradox presents a similar quandary: Why, despite the vastness of the universe and the potential for numerous extraterrestrial civilizations, have we not encountered any? The question becomes, “Where is everyone?”

What if a highly advanced civilization has decided to sever all ties with other intelligent beings across the galaxy?

Perhaps they are cultivating humanity for an unfathomable reason. They might be waiting for us to reach a level of enlightenment akin to Buddha's, believing that our collective consciousness could provide the energy they need for intergalactic travel. Alternatively, they could prefer humanity's extinction, anticipating that the subsequent civilization would better align with their goals. It’s possible that we are still in a nascent stage, akin to caterpillars, and they intend to harvest us only once we evolve into butterflies.

Could it be that they triumphed in a galactic conflict millions of years ago, becoming an enlightened elite that restricts communication with emerging civilizations for their own protection?

For me, the Fermi Paradox doesn’t seem all that paradoxical.

Perhaps my understanding of physics is too rudimentary to grasp that blocking communication between solar systems is infeasible. Or perhaps our current scientific knowledge is as primitive compared to theirs as a caveman's fire is to our understanding of advanced technology.

The possibilities are endless. It could be that we are alone in our galaxy, while countless alien civilizations exist in the Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy, with communication impeded by some inexplicable phenomena unique to intergalactic space—phenomena we cannot even fathom.

Our local group of galaxies comprises over 54 galaxies. The Laniakea Supercluster, which includes the Milky Way, contains approximately 100,000 galaxies. The universe is replete with millions of superclusters, suggesting an expansive and complex cosmic landscape.

The most reasonable explanation for the Fermi Paradox is that we simply do not understand the situation well enough. However, as this article illustrates, that won’t stop anyone from exploring these ideas.

In the realm of cosmic chatter, discussions about communication between various space civilizations abound.

Rumor has it that extraterrestrials are subscribers to Smillew’s Top Hat Seminar on Substack.

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