“It isn’t that they can’t see the solution. It is that they can’t see
the problem.”
~
G. K. Chesterton
“We need more understanding of human
nature, because the only real danger that exists is man himself. He is the
great danger. And we are pitifully unaware of it. We know nothing of man ...
far too little. His psyche should be studied — because we are the origin of all
coming evil”
~ C.G.
Jung
The
problem…Human nature
To address
the problem, (human nature) requires us to address the basic human needs.
Maslow pointed this out in his “Hierarchy of Needs”. The basic needs are… air,
food, water, sex, and safety. These are basic needs that have been deeply
etched into the core of our neurology so that humanity can continue to grow and
flourish.
So now you
might ask…Why has the human brain evolved in a way that attracts us toward
destructive behavior?
Maybe this
is the wrong question to ask?
A helpful analogy
in explaining this behavior is the popular idiom, “Like a Moth to a Flame”.
Sitting out,
enjoying the night on your patio, it might be tempting to ask, “Why do
nocturnal bugs commit suicide by flying into bug zappers? (I’ve actually had
this question at Kim’s aunt and uncle’s house)
I thought….what
could be the possible benefit for this destructive behavior by flying into a
light?
So I looked
it up…In the bug’s case, I was asking the wrong question.
Instead what
I should have asked is, “What's the survival value of having the kind of brain,
which when there are lights about, directs the bugs to fly into them?”
To
understand this “behavior” requires us to go back millions of years. In the wild state, when the moth’s brain was
being naturally selected, there weren't any earthly lights, and if you saw a
bright light in the middle of the night, it pretty well had to be a light from
the cosmos. It could be a firefly or something
like that, but it was most likely to be the moon or a star, or, in a day-flying
insect, the sun.
As it turns
out, nocturnal bug’s brains were hardwired in a world that was navigated by
using celestial lights…. It is only in modernity that lights are low enough for
bugs to fly into.
So, now we
have rephrased the question. The question is not, “What is the survival value
of killing yourself if you're a moth?” the question now becomes, “What's the
survival value of using light to guide your world?” And now we've got a sensible answer. In the case of the moth, flying into a flame
is a hardwired trait imprinted into the bug’s brain that hasn’t evolved enough
to overcome the challenges (lights) in the new world.
While
reading about bugs I had an epiphany. I used to ask a similar question about
humans and our struggles with relationships, finances, and overeating.
I wondered
why we continue to do things that were not in our best interest. What is it
that attracts us toward destructive behavior?
Like the
moth, humans have evolved over the course of millions of years. The reason our
drives often seem counterproductive is that they were built in a world of
scarcity, and one that presented immediate threats to our family and tribe. During
this time, the selection process preferred individuals that were neurologically
hard wired for aggression, consumption, procreation, and safety. It should be
easy to see how these traits were beneficial in a baron world for our early
development.
Our
instinctual brain (ancient) is in
conflict with our rational brain (modern).
Our animalistic instinct has shaped our direction….and our rational brain has
created our world guided by these instinctual needs.
The need for
air is fixed and water is plentiful… the demand for food has been met, and
overly so…sex is on TV and at the touch of our key boards…and our safety has
been somewhat met by local officials and a strong military.
So, now I
had to rephrase my human behavioral question.
The question
is not, “Why has the human brain evolved in a way that attracts us toward
destructive behavior?”
The question
is, “What is the biological advantage for the human brain to consume?”
And now
we've got a sensible answer. In order for early humans to flourish, the desire
for air, food, water, and sex, are dominate traits needed to perpetuate the
species.
Just like the
moth, we have neurological pathways deeply imprinted into the subconscious area
of our brain that direct us toward those ancient desires that are extremely
hard to resist.
Ironically,
if the successful instinctual desires acquired in a dangerous world are not
controlled in the new world of abundance…like a moth, we will fly into the
flame.
The Secret
is our metabolism…the Facts are the facts…and the Problem is our hardwired instinctual
drives that create conflict within the conscious creature.
"If I change my mind, will I change
my choices? If I change my choices will my life change? Why can’t I change what
I’m addicted too? When I change my addiction, what will I lose that I am
chemically attached to? Maybe I don’t want to lose what I’m chemically attached
to because I may have to experience the withdrawal from that”….. Hence the
human drama