Semi-cheesy question Are most people inherently good?

MotherOfDragons
Wed, 30 Mar 2016 18:16:45 +0000

^^I think the getting in line thing is more about being selfish than being evil. And I think there are a LOT of selfish people in the world (it’s one of my pet peeves). I think being selfish harkens back to the primitive part of us as mammals, and I think working collaboratively is one of the reasons we as a species have advanced so far. If we could just dig out the dang selfish behavior that’s so destructive, I think we’d be a lot more civilized.

I was watching a show about dolphins a few nights ago (it’s on Netflix, I can’t remember the name of it but they used these hilarious animatronic sea creatures to film alongside the dolphins), and I was struck by how when one dolphin would catch a big fish, none of the other dolphins would rush in and try to snatch it from him (or her) when they were eating it. They’d also work together to make a ring of sediment in the water to scare the fish up into the air so they could all eat them. But mostly it was the fact that, unlike hyenas who will squabble viciously over food, the dolphins were very considerate (if that’s not anthropomorphising too much) with regards to letting their podmates eat in peace.

There have been some interesting behavioral economics books about selfishness vs. enlightened self-interest vs. selflessness. It’s a fascinating topic.