Andrew Vasquez
Mr. Douglas
History 101a
September 1, 2010

The main idea of “The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race” is that the switch from hunting and gathering as a main source of food to agriculture as a main source of food was a terrible mistake for the human race. I believe the thesis “with agriculture came the gross social and sexual inequality, the disease and despotism, that curse our existence.” Diamond backs up his argument with many claims. One such claim is that hunters and gathers had better diets than people who farmed because their diet was not always the same each day. Another fact is agriculture was the start of a social inequality because people who had a surplus of food now had more wealth and power than people who were in need of food. Diamond also states, “ For instance, the average time devoted each week to obtaining food is only 12 to 19 hours for one group of Bushmen, 14 hours less for the Hadza nomads of Tanzania. (Diamond 100).” This proves that farming did not open up more free time it actually took up more free time. The idea that agriculture was the start of a social class agrees with our lecture theme. Social stratification becomes present and people start claiming power as a direct result of agriculture.