- Capitalism and Alternatives -

We need each other to survive.

In Reply to: Darwin posted by Scott Wilson on September 27, 1999 at 01:37:24:

: Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection argues that the world is a place in which there is a scarcity of resources, there is competition between varied forms of species, and that the most fit forms successfully survive. What might the consequences of this theory be if you consider it within a social context in which a few people are equal in terms of economic wealth, and success in the business world often determine one’s relative social standing? Do the elements of Darwinian evolution make a “good” theory? Why?

There is no reason whatsoever to assume that natural selection should apply to humans in a social sense. It definitely applies to us as a species but here's the trick : one of the main reasons we have been so successful as a species is that as individuals we have eliminated the need for much intra-species competition by forming social groupings. If we still lived in the wild, rampant individualism would be counter productive. We need each other to survive. My belief is that this still applies. The idea of social Darwinism as found in extreme capitalist societies, such as the US, is a dangerous lie.

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