Thoughts on My Race
For the human race I think the emergence of a cognitive brain has relegated purely physical evolution to secondary status. Survival and progress of the human species are being entirely driven by evolution of the cognitive capabilities of the human brain. “Survival of the fittest” no longer applies to individuals. It is now has only collective relevance. The smallest human unit is no longer a single person. It is, I believe, all of humanity given that humans possess the destructive power to render itself extinct. So, individual and collective survival are essentially one and the same. Two powerful repositories of human cognition are wisdom and experience. They are essential to ensuring the human race grows and prospers. Old people are a reservoir of wisdom and experience which humanity ignores at its peril. I think human communities have already recognised this. Respect and caring for one’s elders is a long-held tradition among most human groups. I hope this continues
Another penny that needs to drop is that individual survival is ensured only by collective survival. The common good should be as much a priority as one’s personal, individual goals. Greed has no place in the future of humanity. If it is not eradicated the human race is doomed.
Gerry Roberts 