Human nature is the composite of human instincts. One such instinct is sex; another is tribalism. What is tribalism? How did it evolve? Individuality vs. community—are humans fundamentally selfish or fundamentally social? What is more important: social constructs or human nature? And what does all this mean for our political disagreements? Below you find the answers to these five questions. 1. The altruistic basis of tribalism Tribalism, the human tendency to be loyal to a tribe, opposes … [Read more...]

Tribal vs. Modern Egalitarianism We often hear that our primal human nature is 'egalitarian' because our foraging ancestors, who lived in bands of hunter-gatherers tens of thousands of years ago, treated each other largely as equals: Social equality. Hunter-gatherers did not have hierarchical social structures. Their decision making was consensual. There was not one 'Alpha' to rule them all—"I'm your leader, follow me!" Rather, there were experienced men who took the initiative whenever … [Read more...]

One often hears the argument that only a single worldwide civilization, with a total mixture of all races, would resolve the tensions and conflicts between groups. That does not appear to me necessary or desirable. If one could teach man to be tolerant, i.e., to be ready to understand and accept other lifestyles both within civilizations and between various peoples, then ethnocentrism will find itself defused without it being necessary for groups to surrender their cultural uniqueness nor pride … [Read more...]