User talk:Tacitus: Difference between revisions

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On a side note, do you visit any other Halo sites beside this one? I've always wondered but never had an excuse to ask.[[User:Kal825B|Kal825B]] ([[User talk:Kal825B|talk]]) 20:13, 5 April 2017 (EDT)

:I just think the source material leaves too much to interpretation to make a definitive statement, especially when no source expressly states they were picked solely due to their genetics (though that was likely a contributing factor in many cases).

:My main point is that why would you set someone apart on the basis of their ''theoretical predisposition'' for an ability, rather than that ''ability itself''? Kurt and Mendez had the opportunity to study both of those things, so it hardly makes sense they'd discard one of them entirely. It would be much more advantageous to look at the whole picture of the candidate rather than just one aspect of them.

:I'm not dismissing genetics as a contributing factor here; I'm merely saying it doesn't really make any sense to have been the only selection criterion in that scenario, especially when you're picking people based on abstract traits like leadership, sharpshooting, reconnaissance, etc - how do you even begin to measure those from genes alone? In many cases a natural inclination and practical skill will likely correlate, but the thing about genetics is that they don't always express themselves in clear-cut ways and there are other, random factors which may influence the outcome. (This is obviously different from the program's selection criteria as a whole, which were about augmentation survival rates, thus making genetics of paramount importance in that case.)

:In addition, most of the source material is written in a way that suggests the "cat-2s" were chosen after their training, which suggests observation of their skills in practice; if the selection was solely genetic, each Spartan's fate could've been decided before they first stepped on Onyx. For instance, Jun's profile: ''"Following graduation at the age of 12, he became one of Alpha Company’s best Spartan-III assets, where his skill as a sniper soon had him leading a headhunter team conducting missions directly for ONI."'' He wasn't picked because his genes had destined him for greatness, he was picked because he had demonstrably become one of Alpha Company's best Spartans and was a skilled sniper.

:I do frequent the Halo Archive at least and have posted on Reddit a few times (where I think I actually discussed this very topic with you once). --[[User:Jugus|Jugus]] ([[User talk:Jugus|talk]]) 00:29, 6 April 2017 (EDT)

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 On a side note, do you visit any other Halo sites beside this one? I've always wondered but never had an excuse to ask.[[User:Kal825B|Kal825B]] ([[User talk:Kal825B|talk]]) 20:13, 5 April 2017 (EDT)
+:I just think the source material leaves too much to interpretation to make a definitive statement, especially when no source expressly states they were picked solely due to their genetics (though that was likely a contributing factor in many cases).
+:My main point is that why would you set someone apart on the basis of their ''theoretical predisposition'' for an ability, rather than that ''ability itself''? Kurt and Mendez had the opportunity to study both of those things, so it hardly makes sense they'd discard one of them entirely. It would be much more advantageous to look at the whole picture of the candidate rather than just one aspect of them.
+:I'm not dismissing genetics as a contributing factor here; I'm merely saying it doesn't really make any sense to have been the only selection criterion in that scenario, especially when you're picking people based on abstract traits like leadership, sharpshooting, reconnaissance, etc - how do you even begin to measure those from genes alone? In many cases a natural inclination and practical skill will likely correlate, but the thing about genetics is that they don't always express themselves in clear-cut ways and there are other, random factors which may influence the outcome. (This is obviously different from the program's selection criteria as a whole, which were about augmentation survival rates, thus making genetics of paramount importance in that case.)
+:In addition, most of the source material is written in a way that suggests the "cat-2s" were chosen after their training, which suggests observation of their skills in practice; if the selection was solely genetic, each Spartan's fate could've been decided before they first stepped on Onyx. For instance, Jun's profile: ''"Following graduation at the age of 12, he became one of Alpha Company’s best Spartan-III assets, where his skill as a sniper soon had him leading a headhunter team conducting missions directly for ONI."'' He wasn't picked because his genes had destined him for greatness, he was picked because he had demonstrably become one of Alpha Company's best Spartans and was a skilled sniper.
+:I do frequent the Halo Archive at least and have posted on Reddit a few times (where I think I actually discussed this very topic with you once). --[[User:Jugus|Jugus]] ([[User talk:Jugus|talk]]) 00:29, 6 April 2017 (EDT)