4 ms·

At least 10 thousand years of civilization, and we are still trying to figure out each other and ourselves. Why is "Don't be a dick" so hard to codify? All th

At least 10 thousand years of civilization, and we are still trying to figure out each other and ourselves. Why is "Don't be a dick" so hard to codify? All these religions, ethics and philosophical systems, and all this technology, convenience and comforts.. and we still have so much friction in interacting with others of our own species. The best solution we seem to have found is leaving each other alone. I've come to believe that true maturity is the realization that everyone is capable of feeling the same things you feel. But most of us – me included – seem to have "Single Player Syndrome" where we feel that we are the only person capable of feeling what we feel, and everyone else is an NPC with diluted senses and processing capabilities.

julius_set 7y ago
The major problem is we die, so if we didn’t die then yes those 10,000 years of civilization would help because of the life experiences of the survivors, So: 1.) Not everyone reads history books 2.) We die 3.) Social stats reset at birth, pray you have parents who treat you and other people well The only permanent solution is an evolution of our species where the asshole gene is gone or a collective hive mind
- Razengan 7y ago
  Some social improvements do propagate across generations. For example, we no longer throw virgins into volcanoes. On the other hand there are also regressions with pockets of civilization reverting to outdated practices here and there, even now.
C4stor 7y ago
Multiple hypothesis I can quickly think of, I wouldn't know which ones are correct or not : - "Don't be a dick" doesn't offer any advantage for one's genome transmission, meaning any genetic base to being a dick will get transmitted no problem. - Being a dick propagates, while not being one doesn't, meaning the society has a whole becomes "dick-ish by default" (much like entropy, with dick-iness) unless this is actively acted on. - Religions, culture, nations, companies... actively encourage people to being dicks to everybody not in their group, to preserve and expand the group, meaning we're actively trained to being dicks by our social environment - Our brains default to "everyone is an enemy unless proven otherwise" , meaning people will tend to be dicks by default. - Not being a dick makes one socially vulnerable, so it's only achievable in very safe contexts and not by default

julius_set 7y ago

The major problem is we die, so if we didn’t die then yes those 10,000 years of civilization would help because of the life experiences of the survivors, So: 1.) Not everyone reads history books 2.) We die 3.) Social stats reset at birth, pray you have parents who treat you and other people well The only permanent solution is an evolution of our species where the asshole gene is gone or a collective hive mind

Razengan 7y ago
Some social improvements do propagate across generations. For example, we no longer throw virgins into volcanoes. On the other hand there are also regressions with pockets of civilization reverting to outdated practices here and there, even now.

C4stor 7y ago

Multiple hypothesis I can quickly think of, I wouldn't know which ones are correct or not : - "Don't be a dick" doesn't offer any advantage for one's genome transmission, meaning any genetic base to being a dick will get transmitted no problem. - Being a dick propagates, while not being one doesn't, meaning the society has a whole becomes "dick-ish by default" (much like entropy, with dick-iness) unless this is actively acted on. - Religions, culture, nations, companies... actively encourage people to being dicks to everybody not in their group, to preserve and expand the group, meaning we're actively trained to being dicks by our social environment - Our brains default to "everyone is an enemy unless proven otherwise" , meaning people will tend to be dicks by default. - Not being a dick makes one socially vulnerable, so it's only achievable in very safe contexts and not by default