<humor><p>We've succeeded. We just mind-melded with our second factory worker.
They both know about each other though they live in different areas.
Soon we will have enough to introduce the replicator, "discovered"
by these contacts. This world will be introduced to the galaxy within
a short time with our help. I'm so excited.<p>"Hello." ... Umm, what?<p>"I see you are starting the construction of a replicator."<p>... umm, what? ... Oh. We're not the first contact I see.<p>"No. We've been here a short while but exponentials operate quickly, as they say"<p>You know about replicators. Why haven't you introduced them?<p>"Well, we're not the first contact either. But we've learned a lesson."<p>Others have been here before us? How do you know?<p>"We've learned that introducing our technology before they are ready is bad."<p>But they'd be able to ...<p>"No. Look at their history, such as it is. Every time the last visitors
introduced something all hell broke loose, to use Earth terms. One contact
introduce biocontrol which led to their "Black Plague". A different contact
introduced drugs to enable telepathy and everyone who broke through was
killed by high priests who wanted control. They burned people who broke
through resulting in the Mayan collapse. Yet another introduced solar
technology. Egypt was not emotionally prepared, started worshiping
"the Sun God Ra", work stopped and the civilization collapsed. Some
fool contact introduced the violin and, as near as we can tell their
lead and wine addled brains "burned down the Roman empire". That one is
a little questionable but these people are not good at recording history."<p>Nonsense. a replicator will build more replicators so they will quickly
climb the exponential curve and be free from want.<p>"Free from want? You really are new here. Want drives them all. They
want more powerful weapons so they can take what they want."<p>Well we could make them want less, it's just a simple matter to ...<p>"Some contact tried that. "Buddha", as their group leader was called,
tried to eliminate "wanting" but that only seems to catch on during
the adolescent stage when they don't already own things. It doesn't last."<p>I can see you're right. They will have to be the ones who find us
and make contact. Until they think they invented the idea they won't
be ready for us.<p>"Yeah, we know. We're leaving soon. Let's meet elsewhere."<p></humor><p>Tim Daly. Public Domain. (July 1, 2023)