But a parent doesn't generally speaking melt down their child to build a better one when the warranty expires.

[ There's still a flicker of sadness there. The reasons were all right. The actions were wrong. ]

We didn't know that. You have the anecdotal evidence of generations of human beings that came before you. We were new. There was nothing like us that had come before. We didn't remember our parents, though perhaps if we had, they'd have guided us down a different path.