292 Self and the Phenomenon of Life
b2726 Self and the Phenomenon of Life: A Biologist Examines Life from Molecules to Humanity “9x6”few: The Holocaust (mass extermination in World War II; Nazis against
Jews); former Yugoslavia (in 1995; Eastern Orthodox Serbs against
Bosnian Muslims); Darfur in Sudan (since 2003, Arabs against Africans,
both Muslims); Yelwa in Nigeria (2004; Christians against Muslims).
Among these, the genocide of the Holocaust stands out loud and clear.
As numerous books and public media have been dedicated to this part
of history, I shall not devote any more space to it.
In short, no race or nation has a monopoly on atrocity. Cruelty, as
well as kindness, is in all of us. It is all a matter of self against self, or,
more precisely in these instances, mega-self against mega-self. We are
born with war in our blood.
12.14 The Biological Roots of War and the Only
Way to Eradicate it
We tend to categorize people into “them” and “us.” The “in-groups” are
always friendly, trustworthy, loyal, and kind, whereas “out-groups” are
hostile, despicable, treacherous, and should even be eliminated.^54 We
invent mythology, legends and creation stories to justify the superiority
of our own group, and claim it to be the chosen people of the Creator.
We go to war for a cause, to be sure, always a “good” cause, always a
“righteous” cause, always one worth sacrificing life for. Every human
being considers himself peace-loving, yet wars of all sizes never end.
As a rule, intense inter-group competition requires strong intra-
group solidarity, since unity within a society enables it to outcompete
other groups. Each group is an expanded self that seeks its own chance
of survival, dominance, and perpetuation, often at the peril of others. As
long as humans are partitioned into groups, war will never end. Short
of an invasion from extraterrestrials, we earthlings are not going to stop
killing one another to annihilation, thanks to the power (self-defeating,
in this instance) of group selection. Peace on earth can only be achieved
by eliminating all group boundaries, thereby coalescing all peoples
into one single, ultimate mega-self that encompasses all of humanity.