Claire Fan - Week 10: Darwin's Theory of Evolution
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| Peter Thiel responded "I don't know" to the question: "You would prefer the human race to endure, right?" |
On November 24, 1859, Charles Darwin published a book that would forever change biology on a fundamental level: On the Origin of Species posited the idea that the diversity of life was due to a series of minute changes to an organism across generations, eventually resulting in a new organism. Did the chicken come before the egg? It was actually more of a process; the organism-closest-to-a-chicken laid the first chicken egg.
“Survival of the fittest,” philosopher Herbert Spencer called it. The strongest, most fit species would naturally rise above all.
Today, we’ve redefined the animal kingdom’s definition of power: rather than being the strongest or the most intelligent or being the best at something, fitness is often defined by those flimsy little green bills that have come to dictate most every aspect of our lives. Funnily enough, monetary might often translates to political power, still invisible but no less influential. A PAC, or a Political Action Committee, for example, allows donors to contribute money towards a candidate’s campaign.
While not inherently evil—Zohran Mamdani, the new mayor of New York City, raised around three million dollars from over thirty thousand unique donors—the especially rich with plenty of money to spare can afford (ha!) to spend as much on a candidate that is likely to further their own private interests. German-American billionaire Peter Thiel, who is better known as a founder of Palantir and/or the Guy who Isn’t Sure whether he wants the human race to endure. Thiel spent fifteen million on funding a Super PAC for current vice-president and then-Senate candidate James David Vance’s campaign as well as fostering and supporting several other GOP candidates using tens of millions of dollars.
The facts speak for themselves; it’s plenty obvious to anyone willing to see. Corruption exists not only on the right, but on the left as well. The current political landscape presents a dim future should nothing change. I sometimes wonder if our current situation is one that was inevitable given the parameters for which we’ve defined success by. These days, the invisible hand seems to look a lot like that of a billionaire. Et tu, Adam Smith?
Claire, it is incredibly insightful the way you led into your topic of corruption and the version of power our current society submits to with Darwin’s theory of evolution. It is interesting to think about the way our world works today in accordance with evolution. The rich have become the predators “ris[ing] above all,” as you said. Money has begun to define every aspect of our lives. Status, reputation, opportunity and even freedom have all become contingent on how much money we have managed to accumulate. I think it is especially important that you pointed out how intertwined political power is with wealth. It has become close to impossible to rise up the ladder of political power without a hand feeding money into one's pocket. It makes it close to impossible to hope that change is coming. The trajectory we are on is leading us in a very negative direction regarding almost all aspects of our society, as you pointed out. I also found it incredibly interesting the way you pointed out that corruption does not necessarily start with someone evil. The way our system has developed has almost instilled corruption as necessary to be successful.
ReplyDeleteThe way you approached the idea of what power in America really entails makes for a very interesting read. I enjoyed learning about the various political figures and organizations that are contributing to the state of affairs in the current day. Money and power go hand in hand today and there is no way that will result in something other than corruption. I look forward to reading what you write about next.
When we were writing for the America prompt last quarter I wanted to write about this very moment, Thiel looking away from the interviewer and fumbling over his words like it was the most difficult and nuanced question on the planet, but I didn't even want to think about the fact that the people who have significant sway in the industry worth billions of dollars don’t really care if humanity lives or dies. “You would prefer the human race to endure, right?” would elicit a “Right!” from anyone deserving to be in a position of power.
ReplyDeleteIt’s as if we had been living in this thinly-veiled Orwellian allegory and suddenly after some light prodding the Big Bad Guy turns to the camera and declares that he has no care for humanity and we can all just rot (brain-rot, if you will). Discomforting, to say the least. The worst part is that we knew it all along, I think, but it's weird to actually hear it from the horse’s mouth. It almost feels like it’s too late now.
Anyways, great blog! I especially like the ending, taking a jab at the one who put it all into motion; the father of capitalism himself.
P.S. I always knew the egg came before the chicken, but no-one ever agreed with me. I’m sure us being of one mind on this is of utmost significance!