Weapons of war aside, what is mankind’s most damaging invention?
Neoliberalism.
Lawrie Bradly, Surrey Hills, Victoria, Australia
• Propaganda – oh, and commercials too.
Richard Orlando, Westmount, Quebec, Canada
• The smartphone. Hello, addiction; goodbye, true communication.
Ursula Nixon, Bodalla, NSW, Australia
• Twitter, Facebook and other electronic means of spreading malicious gossip and embarrassing photos.
Joan Dawson, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
• The couch and television.
Dean Takac, Stuttgart, Germany
• The car. Not only does it kill over a million people a year through accidents, and countless more through air pollution, but it then kills even more through lack of exercise. It makes people unpleasant and aggressive, destroys neighbourhoods and takes up huge amounts of land. Despite all that harm, it isn’t even an efficient form of transport.
Nicholas Houghton, Folkestone, UK
• Mankind’s most damaging invention, although probably not intended to be so, is religion.
Daan Zwick, Rochester, New York, US
• Tobacco, closely followed by alcohol.
Gillian Shenfield, Sydney, Australia
• It could be refined sugar, given the negative effects it has on our health. Damaging but delicious!
Avril Taylor, Dundas, Ontario, Canada
• Social media, for the social and moral vacuum they have helped create.
R De Braganza, Kilifi, Kenya
• Ego.
Isabella Czifra, Sydney, Australia
The future could be tense
What would we have if we had no present?
A gift.
Jennifer Horat, Lengwil, Switzerland
• Severely limited grammars having no real-time verbs.
Terence Rowell, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
• A little explaining to do to the bride and groom.
Paul Klenk, New York City, US
• If we had no present, we would be disappointed and grumpy, as though there were no tomorrow.
Jennifer Rathbone Toronto, Canada
• Nothing would change – Albert Einstein was convinced that past, present and future are just an illusion.
David Tucker, Halle, Germany
• Just an empty box.
Roz Pocius, Thirroul, NSW, Australia
• Live in the past, as many do already.
Philip Stigger, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
• Do you mean for birthdays, or Christmas, or both?
John Ralston, Mountain View, California, US
• A past that’s historic and a future that’s tense.
Noel Bird, Boreen Point, NSW, Australia
Cynicism is its own reward
Does cynicism serve any worthwhile purpose?
Fifth-century BC cynics might have asked the same of any school of philosophy.
Anthony Walter, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
• Yes, as a refuge for the disillusioned romantic.
Jane Perry, Wellington, New Zealand
• Generally it is better to be cynical than gullible.
John Anderson, Pukekohe, New Zealand
Any answers?
At what point do you know you are middle-aged?
David Tulanian, Los Angeles, California, US
Why can’t old dogs learn new tricks?
R M Fransson, Wheat Ridge, Colorado, US
Send answers to weekly.nandq@theguardian.com or Guardian Weekly, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU, UK
