"Also, have you ever been to a place where you were a minority?"
I whole-heartedly agree with your theory, which is similar to my own thoughts. I am not a racist; but, when I am in the minority (e.g., the only goth, the only female, the only white person, the only person under 30, the only college-educated person), I perceive more dangers in my environment. I can feel the fight or flight adrenaline being released, increased heart beat, a higher level of awareness of surroundings. It's subtle, nowhere near panic, but perceptible.
In regard to your ape man theory: Many people insist that humans do not possess instincts. This is impossible. We are animals, no different from other mammals. Our insticts have been repressed by laws, religion, etc; moreover, group pressure causes us to abide by such rules and boundaries. So it may be hard for some people to acknowledge that these kinds of insticts (genetic memory?) actually exist in modern man.
Does all of this mean that war is the natural state of man?
Of course, who wants to go hunting smelling like Irish Spring or Lever 2000? The successful hunter will smell like dirt, grass, nature; now or in pre-historic times.
Slashdot Mirror
I whole-heartedly agree with your theory, which is similar to my own thoughts. I am not a racist; but, when I am in the minority (e.g., the only goth, the only female, the only white person, the only person under 30, the only college-educated person), I perceive more dangers in my environment. I can feel the fight or flight adrenaline being released, increased heart beat, a higher level of awareness of surroundings. It's subtle, nowhere near panic, but perceptible.
In regard to your ape man theory: Many people insist that humans do not possess instincts. This is impossible. We are animals, no different from other mammals. Our insticts have been repressed by laws, religion, etc; moreover, group pressure causes us to abide by such rules and boundaries. So it may be hard for some people to acknowledge that these kinds of insticts (genetic memory?) actually exist in modern man.
Does all of this mean that war is the natural state of man?
Of course, who wants to go hunting smelling like Irish Spring or Lever 2000? The successful hunter will smell like dirt, grass, nature; now or in pre-historic times.