Not to be pessimistic
Realism is not pessimism
“From such crooked wood as that which man is made of, nothing straight can be fashioned.” – Immanuel Kant
I’m afraid I must agree with Dr. Kant on this matter. It’s not that all of humanity is “crooked” or morally flawed, but that collectively, that which humanity has or will produce, build, or design finally ends up being irretrievably broken and fundamentally flawed. Of course, I am not saying that they didn't start with the best of intentions, but in the end, almost anything that they have had a hand in constructing, or influence over, turns out to be major league fucked-up.
Why is this? It is a basic, fundamental flaw - a character flaw, if you will. Humanity is operating in the 21st century with a prehistoric brain and, it's not really our fault. The blame lies squarely on the shoulders of Darwin’s famous insight - evolution.
Yes, nature is to blame for our sorry reality. Thousands of years of survival of the fittest, living by the law of the wild. Kill, or be killed, fight to protect what is yours, or lose it to a shreweder, stronger or lucky aggressor. That's why we are the way we are and also why every social stucture we build, is ultimately built with crooked timber.
So what's to be done about it? Nothing, as there is nothing that can be done about it, the world is the way it is, because humans are the way they are. You cannot change the stripes of a tiger, or the nature of sapiens. Hoping for the best is the only option.
Postscript December 7, 2024: Walter Rhein, https://open.substack.com/pub/walterrhein?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=4eij5o penned an intelligent response to a question I recently posed to him. Ready for a great read? Savor it!
https://www.crookedtimberworld.com/p/how-christianity-contrived-to-bring?r=4eij5o
Thanks for your support!
Best,
Jeffrey