Survival

Survival

Evolution is one of the most fascinating phenomenons of all life on Earth. It is no hidden secret that all life on our planet has evolved to better adapt to their surroundings so as to continue to thrive and pass on their genes to the next generation.

One of the most interesting aspects of evolution though is how different life forms including plants adapt to their environment by a variety of means including changing their appearance and very way of life, to survive. The weakest animal is always an easy hunt and hence dies out before passing on its weak genes and the fittest survives to make the next generation faster and stronger.

This innate quality is found in all beings. One classic example is that of the turtles that come out in the dark of the night to lay their eggs in the soft sand on the beach. The birth of these new born turtles is nothing but a food festival for a number of other creatures who feast on them with relish, taking nourishment. Only the fastest or the strongest of these turtles survive the onslaught to make it to the sea and hence are able to pass on their genes to the next generation that promises to be better and stronger.

As humans we also have evolved as well. But our evolution has taken a different turn. The question that really hits me is what have we been evolving into? Unlike most animals who have changed physically to adapt to their environment to survive the onslaught of predators who hunt them, humans have evolved mentally.

This can be looked upon as a double-edged sword. On the one hand, our standard of living in all aspects has improved immensely from what it used to be a few centuries ago on the other hand lies the darker results of our mental evolution.

Just like the animals, our world too belongs to the fittest of survivors; however, this fitness doesn’t refer so much to the physical aspect anymore but to the mental faculty – brains in place of brawn. In short then, survival of the fittest, when it comes to mankind, alludes to the survival of the most cunning human. By using our mental abilities to trick and outsmart, today we have found ways to eschew the beheading or killing of thousands with blades. Instead we play political and diplomatic games that result in starvation and death of numerous people. Just because there is no direct killing, however, doesn’t mean people aren’t dying because of brutal regimes and certain bully countries.

The more cunning you are the richer and more powerful you get over a period of time and successfully pass on these genes to the next generation making life on our planet even worse as more and more cunningness is passed on to our offspring. These cunning beings also make sure that the remainder of our population remains dumb and does not see them for what they really are. In some places they do this by refraining from developing communities who are so involved in survival at the most basic levels that it’s unthinkable for them to pay any attention to the world stage of politics. In other places, this strategy takes on the alluring form of TV. Major media channels and newspapers are further manipulated like puppets that pay far more attention to “tabloidisque” or sensational pieces of news as opposed the urgent truth that is crying out to be told (think Somalia, Erythria, Panama, Sierra Leone, and several more countries).

It was a BBC documentary on evolution that got me thinking on these lines. But it was after watching an eye-opening documentary called Occupation 101 that I was able to see the unappealing big picture which tells but one story of the many that run on similar themes. The documentary talks about the Israeli occupation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. How many of us are truly aware of the details of what has been going on in that region for decades? Why does mainstream media not highlight the plight of the Palestines who are dying in hundreds of thousands while focusing so much on the deaths of people in the 9/11 crash? Does this mean that some nationalities are more valuable than others and therefore deserve more media attention?

Time and time again, it basically comes down to our desire to seek the truth and gain knowledge so we can act as responsible citizens of the world and not only make informed decisions when choosing our leaders but hold them accountable for the acts they precipitate.

Here’s a link to the documentary if you’re interested in finding out the truth. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2451908450811690589&ei=T_oeS7-PL5CEwgPp2I3rDQ&q=occupation+101#

Knowledge, as we know, is power.
BUT
"The Greatest Enemy of Knowledge is Not Ignorance, It is the ILLUSION of Knowledge….” – Stephen Hawking.