[mrnoodle]

tw's point is well-made, but I don't think it's accurate. Most of the time we're only maintaining the status quo, but it's through tiny improvements that each of us make daily that the larger "improvements for mankind" happen. We are constantly looking for easier, faster, more comfortable ways of getting through our daily lives; eventually, someone comes up with a new, striking way that attains broader use. Enough people got tired of the jarring they got from riding wooden wheels on dirt roads that one of em finally came up with tires and asphalt.

The individual soldier is part of a larger unit that is working toward some goal ("take the hill" or some such) which is, in turn, part of a larger plan. While the soldier's bellycrawl across a field isn't advancing the overall state of humanity in and of itself, it is part of an advancement.

And the advancement could be on many levels other than warfare. There are numerous products in use today that have a military history, particularly things like waterproof fabrics, transportation advancements, communications, etc.

I think we're always moving forward, I'm just not sure our destination is what we think it is.