A while back, as I was trying to make sense of what I was experiencing as a citizen of the United States during these unique times, I found myself trying to answer three questions. The first one was “How could those who call themselves Christian’s, support, install, and defend America’s current political regime?” My answer? Those Christian’s support has absolutely nothing to do with what the founder of Christianity represents. It has EVERYTHING to do with power, access, control, influence, revenge, and people’s susceptibility to believe the lies they are told.
So, on to my second question. Which is actually a two-part question.
How can some of us (supposedly civilized human beings) treat millions of other human beings the way we do? How can we so thoughtlessly, callously, starve ‘em, beat ‘em, fire ‘em, destroy their families, let ‘em die of thirst, let ‘em die of AIDS, jail ‘em, poison ‘em, laugh at ‘em, mock ‘em, and ignore ‘em. How is it possible that millions of us elect and continue to support people who openly do those things?
My answer? It’s all in the genes. Prosociality.
What is Pro-Sociality? It is a term that explains the tendency of most human beings (60%) to cooperate, share resources, act in ways that benefit others, even at their own personal expense. They possess a proclivity to notice unfairness, inequity and injustice, both as it applies to them and to others. Pro-sociality explains the tendency of some of us to share resources, cooperate with others, and partake in acts that benefit the collective good. It encompasses actions that foster community, empathy, and mutual support. Helping, sharing, volunteering, and showing kindness.
Pro-sociability is a key component of social cohesion and is linked to traits such as altruism, compassion, and a sense of responsibility towards others. It is related to factors such as moral development, socialization, and positive group dynamics. It plays a crucial role in strengthening positive relations, reducing conflict, and creating supportive social environments.
Such an orientation has enabled homo-sapiens to become the dominant species over other species over the eons (think neanderthals). Our ability to cooperate is one that other “homo” species did not have. As this 60% walk through life, they notice the inequity, injustice, cruelty, and unfairness. They are moved to the point of taking action. This group lost the election of 2024 by the way.
Another 30% of humanity, the non-prosocial group, is where we find the source of what is happening in our country at the moment. In their defense, they aren’t “bad”, they are just blind and deaf to the inequity, injustice, cruelty, and unfairness that the prosocial’s are aware of.
Interestingly, they are actually fully capable of seeing what the prosocial group sees, WHEN IT HAPPENS TO THEM OR THEIR LOVED ONES. Gratefully, it seems that at this moment in time, since more and more of them are becoming victimized, they can see what the prosocials have been experiencing.
That leaves us with the remaining 10%. They are the truly anti-socials. At this point in time, they are in power. In charge. In control. They see clearly - very clearly - exactly what is happening. They are busy at work taking advantage of the unfairness, inequity, inequality, etc. For personal gain.
They can’t help it, that is just who they are. At this moment in time, they see what is happening as a great opportunity to prune the human-being tree. The poor, the sick, the elderly, the people of inferior genes, the hungry - get rid of them. So that they get more.
This is not unique to this time or place. The 10% is typically in charge. Of civilizations, of countries, of corporations. Throughout history.
Population cleansing has always been a tool of this 10%. This anti-social group has always had as a strategy, getting rid of those they perceive as the inferiors. America throughout its history. Spain, The Netherlands, The Japanese, Portugal, The UK, The Vikings, The Romans, and Germany in the 1930’s, is but a partial list.
What is currently happening in our country, right now is, historically speaking, what “normal” looks like for this 10%. They run the country or the corporation.
There are a number of countries today that represent a government where the 60% of pro-socials, are in charge. America is no longer one of them. They also happen to be the countries that rank near the top of “Happiest Countries in the World” list.
How did we manage for 250 years here in America to provide at least the illusion of being a country based on prosocial decent human values?
We have done as well as we have, because our founders imposed some rules to keep the worst of the 10%’s impulses in check. American Democracy (and actually it isn’t and never has been a democracy - it is a republic) has been described as “an experiment.”
If one reads the primary source materials of the constitutional formation era, our founders were very studied and clear about what had worked and what hadn’t throughout the known history of governments. They had significant knowledge about the kinds of things that had destroyed other governments and civilizations.
One of the foundational ideas was to create a government with a balance of power. The three branches of government and the Free Press.
Another was to make sure the church and state were separated.
They set up a country where the 10% were forced by peer pressure to curb their self-serving instincts. Those instincts didn’t go away, but the 10%ers were forced to hide, subjugate, and repress the most inhuman and destructive parts of their nature. That used to be us. Our country.
It still is for some of the remaining democracies in the world. No longer true here.
We are witnessing just how important and fragile those “Balance of Power legs” are. We have lost one leg (Congress) who at this moment in time simply rubber stamps the executive branch’s whims.
Another leg, the executive branch, is off on a manic cocaine run. The third leg, the courts, is loose and wobbly. The fourth leg, the free press, is being threatened, bought off and beaten.
History shows that eventually such regimes die out. It typically isn’t pretty. There is always massive collateral damage.
Wondering what you can do? If you are among the 60% speak up. How and where? Start close in, as David Whyte’s epic poem suggests.
A simple message such as, “This is not right.” Or “This is not funny.” Or “People are being hurt.” Whenever and wherever you can, even if it is only to yourself before you go to sleep at night. If you don’t say that at least to yourself, you move from the awake to those sleeping.
If you stop noticing because it is too hard, too confusing, too upsetting, you move by default, from the 60%, into the other 40%.
Please don’t ostrich. Our children and grandchildren are watching. And listening. And learning. They will end up living with what we leave.
“Words cannot change things overnight, but they can over time.”