Why Humans Act Superior to Others: The Dirty Little Secret
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― Thomas Paine
The other day, I was scrolling through my Facebook feed and came across a guy showing off his "Good Guy" mask. A Good Guy mask is a position one takes to show they are more virtuous than other human primates in the tribe. This person publicly declares he is "good" to mark his primate territory. There is a reason humans declare their superiority under the mask of altruism and nobility.
He commenced by musing: "What would I do with a million dollars?" asserting that he would do nothing different because he is "not afraid to work" and has all his life. With a smug look, he virtue signaled to those "other lazy dudes" on social media who would spend their million dollars wantonly without regard to the type of "goodness" he has. He believes he is morally superior to them.
Posturing as one who is better than others is a device for increasing one's value to society. It's a cover up for inadequacy. The self-inflated good-guy needs a bad-guy to measure his virtue against. Thus, he advertises himself as morally superior under the mask of false humility.
People like this are constantly comparing themselves to others. They just can't live their lives without measuring their moral "boob of a self" against whatever they call evil. They need a nemesis to validate their "good-guy" mask. These are the type who love authority. They may volunteer for a neighborhood watch program and stake out evil-doers.
Who's Pounding Their Chest?
Human behavior is motivated by the biological urge for survival. Bob thinks he is making decisions, but "Bob" is a concept, a volitional identity who believes he has free will. It's a name slapped on protoplasm at birth. But science is increasingly demonstrating that free will is an intuitive illusion. If you doubt this, I invite you to explain how we beat our hearts. Obviously, we don't, and because of that, nothing happens in our biology without a beating heart, including thoughts. Bob believes he's 'calling the shots' until nature proves otherwise — Memento mori.
Human Monkey Business
Men resemble chimpanzees in their approach to attracting females for mating, owing to their common primate heritage. Both employ tactics like displays of dominance, competitive behaviors, attention to physical traits, and the act of sharing resources to captivate the interest of females. Furthermore, they establish social connections and engage in communication to highlight their virtuous attributes.
One of the predatory tricks to raise social status and attract potential mates are displays of honor. These noble savages increase their charm and appeal by metaphorically pounding their chests. These brutes know females are more likely to "give it up" with a valiant male who has the moral aptitude to look at women from the neck up. They are masters at peripheral vision (wink, wink).
When it comes to authorities, humans feel safe and fuzzy when they feel protected. It's basic primate hierarchical behavior. And the apes at the top of the food chain know this. That's why Jeff Bezos has a Community Banana Stand in front of his Seattle headquarters.
A Community Banana Stand is a fruit stand operated by the American company Amazon around its Seattle headquarters and Arlington headquarters, offering free bananas to passersby. Originally proposed by then-CEO Jeff Bezos, the first Community Banana Stand opened in South Lake Union in December 2015. [1]
Humans are Super-Predators
Predatory altruism masks the biological urge for violence — humans are killing machines — but they prefer to be looked at as hard-working heroes. Not to negate actual heroic acts but to make the point that the biological motive behind sacrifice is self-interest. Heroes do what they do because of what "they value," and there's nothing wrong with that. The deception lies in the "act" of false humility. Humans are super-predators and will use deception when necessary:
We hunt for food, and we hunt for fun. But we are unlike other natural predators, according to a study recently published in Science. We are “super-predators,” researchers say.
Most natural predators on land — like lions, bears, and tigers — prefer to hunt juvenile prey animals for food. But on analyzing a global database of over 300 studies, researchers found that humans kill 14 times more adult prey than other predators. Humans also hunt carnivores at nine-times the rate of other predators, they found. [2]
If you have any doubt that humans are killing machines, I recommend the book: HOMO, 99 and 44/100% NONSAPIENS.
Far be it from me to throw all human males into the predatory altruism box. Plenty of authentic men fight for what's right and make the necessary sacrifices to love their families. But make no mistake, these are selfish acts for "their cause" and reflect what "they" value. A man's wife and family are "his tribe," and he makes a noble go of protecting his assets — my wife, my kids, my car, my house. This territorial behavior also exists within LGBTQ relationships. Wherever you have humans, you have primate behavior.
The Virtue of Selfishness
The crude truth about humans is they are genetically selfish, and this isn't a bad trait. It is what the survival urge is doing. Let's take Mother Teresa, for example. She was the poster crone for self-sacrifice, devotion, and altruism. But if you take a deeper dive, you'll find that everything she did was motivated by "her beliefs and values." She helped others because of the way it made her feel, even when suffering. Her motivations were satisfied by helping the poor, with the added benefit of Heavenly rewards.
The same goes for Christians who believe they can only be good with God. Their selfless acts (missionary work, feeding the homeless, saving sinners) may relieve their fears of eternal damnation or fluff their approval odds — all self-motivated. They believe Jesus is interested in "their salvation" because "they" will receive a reward in "their" celestial amusement park. (I expect selfish negative comments from the fauthful to prove my point).
Everything we do is for ourselves. The authentic person does not pretend otherwise. Altruism is just a mask for a nasty little word called — selfishness — the bane of religious programming.
How to Deal with the Superiority Trip
Getting back to the "Good-Guy" mask at the beginning of this article. How do you deal with predatory altruism? The key is to deprive them of their sustenance — admiration. You must be as cunning as them:
- Don't be amazed when they declare their moral superiority.
- Treat them like like you would a homeless person without a job.
- Distribute your attention aimlessly while they talk about themselves.
- Make up a story about someone you know who thinks they are better than others. Describe them precisely as the person acts. Try to get them to agree with your contempt. Join forces.
- For further amusement, share with them that you might start a blog on people who virtue signal on social media — drop Facebook as your first designated post.
- Another tactic is to become super interested in them. Listen intently as they talk about themselves. Suggest things they can do to spread their greatness, such as joining the city council, promoting a charity, or becoming a spiritual teacher. Be amazed at their authority. If you really want to rub it in, compare them to Jesus, Buddha, or the Gods of Atlantis.
"To my mind, a well-developed sense of humor is the surest indication of a person's humanity, no matter how black and bitter that humor may be."
― Thomas Ligotti
The Dirty Truth
My recommendation is to be brutally honest with yourself. Accept your primatehood. Celebrate it. Be amazed at the millions of years of evolution that made you who you are. Understand that you are part of a vast ecosystem. Be humbled by the fact that you are entirely dependent on the forces of nature ― it's better to be a self-aware primate than a sleeping monkey.
Grow a Sense of Humor
"A sense of humor is the only divine quality of man." ― Arthur Schopenhauer
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