Whenever I hear about a murder recently I’ve found myself being feeling just as sorry for the murderer as I do for the victim. I know that’s kind of a bold statement and I’m going to do my best to explain myself. I think a lot of people will think that it’s a terrible thing to say but it’s just how I feel.
I’m pretty sure we can all agree that a murderer (or a rapist or whatever) has something wrong with them. Something is causing them to act this way. If you want my opinion, I think that it’s mental damage inflicted through the environment that triggers possible genetic leanings a person might have, but even if it’s 100% genetic (which is unlikely — they’ve yet to find anything close to a ‘criminal’ gene) or any other reason they can find, can we really hate people for what their broken brains direct them to do? They should be held responsible, no doubt, but hated? I understand it but I don’t think I have it in me to really blame them.
I’m not saying we let people ‘get away’ with anything, but punishment hasn’t proved to be an effective deterrent. If anything I think prisons promote and reinforce these types of behaviours. People don’t learn how to be kinder and gentler in prison. These people need to be helped, we need to find the causes behind their actions, whatever they are, so we can work to eliminate these causes and prevent future problems. Sick people need to be helped, not disregarded and caged like animals.
Having spent a couple years in prison myself. I am highly amused.
People murder, rape, and steal because they have been taken out of their natural environment. Murder, rape, and stealing is natural behavior. Before you laugh, just hear me through. There are two good natural reasons for this so called deviant behavior.
1)
10,000 years ago, what environment would a successful human have evolved to successfully inhabit?
Humans of the time would live in small tribes, where they would know everyone in their tribe. They would be loyal to their tribe, their survival depended on it. They would be fearful of the neighbor tribe, or any unknown. Contrast this to what we have now, most of us don’t even know our real fucking neighbor nextdoor, and we certainly don’t give a shit about him. We have our neighbor tribe manufactured for us by our government, by some imaginary lines on the globe. We definitely hate them.
What happened? We have been taken out of our natural environment. We have (been put)/(put ourselves) into little cages. We run on our treadmill every day to get our food and water. We are prisoners, all of us, and we don’t even know it.
Look at animals in zoo’s. They suffer all sorts of idiosyncrasies. From increased rates of homosexuality, self mutilation, to killing their own young. These caged animals act a lot differently than they do in nature. They act a lot more human.
Now, back to nature. Killing, stealing, and rape are natural!? They are, for the tribe over the next hill. Humans are territorial just like apes. We will kill our competitors when they threaten our resources. We need those resources to survive! Next time you feel united against the Terrorists, the Arabs, the (Emmanuel Goldstein)propaganda of the week. Just remember, that’s your tribal instinct that is being manipulated. Manipulated in order to get some of you to kill. To get soldiers to defend the megatribe.
Nowadays, we segregate ourselves into little tribes anyways. Whether you are the alpha female of the local knitting club, or the president of the US of A. You are part of some little tribe. Funny how we can’t overcome our nature. You can bet that the Alpha female of the knitting club dominates just as her alpha tribe female would. And every Beta female is waiting to topple her.
All of these little tribes are part of the megatribe. You and me. Together somehow, even though we don’t know each other. Those soldiers in Afghanistan died for us, for our megatribe. They don’t know us. The brainwashing runs deep.
2)
Most of us don’t personally kill anymore. However, millions of years of evolution can’t be unlearned. Up until recently, you had kill if you wanted to eat meat (and you very likely NEEDed to). Now some man in a factory does the dirty work for you. But you are still left with the evolutionary instinct of killing.
Forgive the rant, but as far as I am concerned it is a damn shame. We are so removed from nature that we don’t even look our meals in the eye anymore. And before you interrupt with the vegan/vegetarian POV know this: we were born with canine and incisor teeth for a reason. The human animal was meant to eat meat. It is natural. The liberal viewpoint of equality and egalitarianism is moot when you examine nature.
Back on track. We now live sterile lives. We are so far removed from nature that we no longer understand what ‘living’ requires. In order to survive, something else must die. The strong survive, the weak perish.
If you think about it, there can really be no other way. If the weak were allowed to thrive along with the strong, what would happen?
In the short run, we would have a socialist utopia. Everyone would hold hands and sing kumbaya.
In the long run, the story is much different. The weak would pass on their (weak) genes to the next generation. As a result the species as a whole would get weaker. Eventually it would succumb to disease, starvation, or a superior way/species. I hope I don’t have to spell out the details. Nature is the superior way. It is not nice, but it is fair.
The emperor has no clothes! Man is enlightened in nature! Bullshit. We need to acknowledge that we are part of nature, not above it. We need to get back to our roots. The sad part is, that none of us would be willing to give of ourselves what this transformation requires. No matter, it will happen eventually. Nature demands it, it will happen eventually.
I am not afraid to kill my own meal. I am not afraid to look it in the eyes as it dies. I think this is the ultimate form of thankfullness to nature, to my prey. At least it got to live a real life, unlike on some factory farm.
LaoTze
The Tao that can be spoken of is not the true Tao.