Same Thing, Different Day

Wall of sandbags surrounded by water, the same technology that fortified the trenches of World War I almost one hundred years ago.

I was watching Joan of Arc on the television this morning; scenes of siege warfare with men running about the castle walls wearing heavy protective armor. I was struck by the fact that here we are 577 years later and we're still scurrying about in body-armor and hiding behind huge walls of concrete. Mortars are being lobbed over the walls indiscriminately killing or maiming those inside. We're still firing weapons propelled by the expanding gases of exploding gunpowder, an ancient Chinese invention. How far have we really advanced in 500 plus years? Is the fact that we can now do it from insanely long distances away with extreme accuracy considered 'advancement'? To me, 'advancement' is simply just not doing it at all.