Being both more systematically brutal than chimps and more empathetic than bonobos, we are by far the most bipolar ape. Our societies are never completely peaceful, never completely competitive, never ruled by sheer selfishness, and never perfectly moral.
- Frans de Waal
Like bonobos we humans are capable of empathy, cooperation, love, generosity, and kindness. We feel great sorrow at the suffering of others and when confronted by disaster we put our differences aside and make great sacrifices, often for complete strangers.
The same conditions that made empathy and cooperation hot commodities also gave rise to our inner-chimpanzee. We spent the majority of our existence poised between survival and extinction. Doom in prehistoric times came in many forms but was most often represented by starvation, the elements, predators, and rival groups of people competing for limited resources. Only our inner-chimpanzee—aggressive, intolerant, territorial, greedy, and violent—could ward off these external threats.
For those of us fortunate enough to have been born in the developed world, the threat of extinction is a distant thing. We have plenty of food and drink, houses that shelter us from the elements, medicine to ward off sickness, and law enforcement to protect us from dangerous individuals. Our inner-chimp is becoming obsolete.
Our species is still at risk but the threats are different now. They are too big and complex to face with primitive, unrefined tools. Whereas tribalism and greed were once per-requisites to survival, they are now impediments. If we wish to overcome these new challenges we must silence our inner-chimp and embrace our inner-bonobo.
Easier said than done, right?
This tendency toward duality persists in all human constructs. Ideals of liberty and equality contend with slavery and exceptionalism. Socialists face off against capitalists, liberals against conservatives, atheists against theists. Even in our leisure we create systems of competition and duality. One need only look at team sports for a prime example, where even the fans engage in rivalries on behalf of their chosen teams!
Once tricked into choosing a side we're incapable of thinking rationally. We become trapped in the matrix of dualities. We stop seeing fellow humans and start seeing allies and opponents. We see those who oppose us as a threat, somehow different, not deserving of our love, respect, or attention. The inner-chimp takes over. We do not seek to understand our opponents; we are only concerned with achieving victory. We believe that our survival depends on it and rightfully so. For roughly 2 million years, it did.
We want to believe that the world is simple despite all evidence to the contrary. We want to believe that we are good, smart, and that our beliefs are Truth. By default, anyone opposing our views or championing a rival ideology is bad, stupid, and believes in dirty lies. They become less than human and thus easier to mistreat. We've seen this time and time again.
The future of our race lies not in conflict but in cooperation. Opposing sides must come together and learn from each other. Our survival and prosperity depend on it. If we want to keep living on this beautiful planet and remain free of oppression and suffering, we must all work together and we must do so quickly.
Events were set into motion long before we were born. We inherited a world furbished with complex economic and political systems, religions, ideologies, and cultures. Whatever you think of your opponent, know that he too is an unwitting product of his environment. Put yourself in his shoes. Strive to understand where his beliefs come from and you may be shocked to find he is little different from you
We must break free of the duality matrix and regard the world from an outsider's perspective. We cannot allow falsehoods and illusions to lead us down the path of destruction. There's no reason we can't all happily coexist regardless of our views and beliefs. Anyone who tells you otherwise, who claims one side must vanquish the other in order to survive, is lying. The world is big enough to accommodate every ideology and belief system. And if in the distant future it becomes too cramped, surely we can find a solution to that problem as well.
But first we must tackle the problems which assail us today. Even if we ignore humanity’s struggle against oppressive regimes, corrupt political systems, and corporations bent on pillaging every last natural resource on the planet, we must still contend with climate change, super-pandemics, and the ever-present threat of an asteroid wiping us out like it did the dinosaurs.
In the face of such conditions we should stifle our inner-chimpanzee in favour of bonobo behaviour. Let's resolve our issues amicably, come together and ensure the survival and prosperity of our entire species.
Our differences are illusory. They are enforced by our scumbag brains and reinforced by those who would rather see us divided than united. I don’t want to say that time is running out but there is plenty of evidence that it might be. At the very least we are entering turbulent times marked by social unrest, overreaching governments, rapid changes in technology and society, and extreme weather.
We can face these changes alone or surrounded by our fellow bipolar apes. The choice is up to us all.
(PS. Here's a good piece on bonobos for anyone who doesn't know what they are or who want to learn more about them. /rant over)
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