Conflict exists to promote evolutionary development. Though, it is no longer just physical, but for us who claim to be human, mental, emotional, spiritual.

In earlier times, conflict was more personal. It was all about surviving as individuals. Like many animal species, humans work together best in small herds of around 30 - 40. At that size, what is best for an individual is best for the group, it's easier to manage resources when times are tough, food and shelter can be readily shared without pressure on the individual, and one can still retire into their personal bubble space.

These days however, it is becoming increasingly obvious to those whose eyes and minds agree on what is displayed that survival of the species is rapidly becoming a group thing. We must now learn to overcome the herd mentality and become a hive. What is good for the individual now must be weighed against the good of all humanity.

Early in our history, man would slaughter each other on the basis of competition for survival. Conflicts were, in general fairly small, short-lived, take no prisoners type affairs. We lived in small tribal communities that were extremely protective of their local resources. Unannounced visitors were often treated as threats to survival, as archeological evidence has shown.

Putting aside other influences for a moment, one could say that this early fighting was about protecting self from external threats. If I had a small cave that would shelter my tribe from the approaching storm, and your tribe was caught outside and decided you needed my cave, the tribes would fight, winner had shelter, (and a smaller tribe). The same applied for food sources and whatever else was needed to survive. In short, the threats were external.

This was followed by a relatively Golden Age. The earth spirits had stopped leaving the refrigerator door open to make ice-age sculptures to show to their friends. The sky gods stopped using us for target practice by throwing large rocks and ice at us from space. Man had learned enough about the ground he walked on to make more efficient use of resources, growing food instead of collecting it so there was enough to go around, we learned to make shelters that withstood the weather, visiting other communities was encouraged in the name of trade. Now that we were not so busy protecting ourselves we had time to think and discuss the way the world worked, and travelers brought wondrous information about the world outside. Communities began to work together to better the living conditions of the group, perhaps with some thought of preparation in case we pissed off another vengeful god. Who knows? The point is we didn't kill each other in order to survive. Sure folks still stabbed each other, but usually that was more because someone was being a dick.

Man began to understand nature. Those who understood the finer details were variously called shamans and witchdoctors, later they were alchemists and magicians. These days we normally call them scientists, (though I'm beginning to doubt whether they know more than the ancients did about the Earth). 

Moving on, conflict began to appear again. This time the scale was much larger, it was not about community survival either.  Also, the instigators tended not to be on the front lines so much, preferring to play chess from the back of the field. Oh sure, there were few at the start who obviously didn’t think of it, too busy with bloodlust, but as time progressed the fight starters learned that picking up whores for post-battle sex was easier if they weren’t dead. Exaggerating ones deeds was another survivor’s perk.

The reasons for battle now had become twisted. It became a competition, not for resources, but for stuff. Everyone had enough food and shelter, until some dick decided he needed more stuff. Watch some George Carlin talking about stuff -

The fights moved from ‘stuff’, and now were less about ‘stuff’ and more about ideologies. People stopped thinking about each other, and became more interested in having other folks agree with their ignorant ideas. They got so worked up and over-excited about changing the colour of the ground from green to red, they forgot how they had existed relatively harmoniously despite differing opinions, (slight assumption, just go with it).

Imagine the battlefield sledging (do it in a child’s voice!) - “My battle god is better than your battle god, and He said we could take your stuff and rape your women”. “The earth is flat not round we fool, here taste my sword”. “Don’t be teaching folks how to read and communicate information, they might tell each other about how we stabbed that guy who talks about round planets”.  And so on...

Since then we have become more civilized. Err oops, getting ahead of history.

There is so much propaganda from either side, it’s hard to know what’s really happening. We have such an unprecedented access to information one would think we would know what is going on, but do we?

We have enough food to go around, yet people starve to death because they can’t pay for it. We have enough resources, we just like wasting them or again, don’t have as much monopoly money as the chaps who own the printing press. We have enough fuel, we just refuse use it efficiently because, yes I really do need a 22 foot long 12 foot high vehicle that uses more fuel than the Exxon Valdez tipped on the beach to get some milk and bread. We have the technology and mind to create a world without money or borders, but we’d rather fight and squabble like unevolved Neanderthal babies with no social experience.

We all know this behavior is bullshit stupidity, yet we continue to let ourselves be led into dispute like lemmings off a cliff. We keep following the herd we live in, obeying its values even when we know they are not in our or anyone’s best interest. Why? Because our behavior is a holdover from when we lived instinctively, fighting for survival. Think about this next time we speak to someone, watch their reactions, and test them. Are they reacting rationally to you? Most don’t.

The Universe we live in is dualistic (as far as we can tell). It is not static. Look at the life cycles of planets and stars, of plants and animals. Actually look at anything cyclic. There is up time and down time. There is growth and life and entropy and death. Physics tells us that energy is never destroyed, just changes form. The minerals and elements in your body only exist because some stars died to form them. This webpage - We're made of stars! - has some nice charts, info and more cool links. You are a Star! How cool is that!

A star had to die for us to live. Before it died it suffered enormous stresses which caused it to create the bits that make us. The food we eat also came from a dying star, think about next time you eat.

Without stress, strengths are not developed. Swords are made from metals that are heated and beaten and cooled many times. Everything around us would not exist without stresses being put on them in some way to produce the qualities they contain. Wood can even be tempered with heat. Bacteria, viruses and such can be introduced into the body in such a way that it stresses the body to become stronger, less susceptible to disease, even immune to some infections.

 Our mental process is no different. We learn life lessons from stressful experiences. Education stresses the mind to remember patterns and symbols, ideas and associations. When we went to school the exams were often stressful because of the pressure/stress your parents or peers or we gave yourself to perform well, but we learnt something. It stuck in your head. If you’re like me you probably don’t recall the lesson details very well, but it’s in there, ready to surprise us when we need it. Environmental and cultural clashes induce stresses often forcing re-evaluation of values, morality and beliefs.

These are the opportunities to become the person we, perhaps secretly, think we want to be. Everyone has something they wish they could change about themselves. Lose weight, gain strength, have hair, make more money, make the world a better place.

We know in our hearts what is good for us, we all do. It’s like pointing out the obvious, but I’m going to anyway. We know eating at McDonalds is equivalent to eating the wrapper after its been dragged thru a poison factory then used to wipe someone’s ass, but we eat it anyway. We know we shouldn’t eat that second bowl of ice-cream because it will go straight to our ass, but we can re-start that diet tomorrow. We know we shouldn’t eat any food that has a label, but it’s so much quicker than waiting for vegetables to cook. We know our body only needs a few  handfuls of fresh food each day, but still we gobble that extra bacon at breakfast plus a pie on the way to work then a large lunch with small desert then go home for 2 helpings of dinner followed by desert or three, a quick sandwich before bed or maybe a midnight snack. Not to mention the lolly's and chocolate and whatever crap snuck in between meals that we didn’t tell the wife about. We know we need 2-3 liters of clean water each day but we merrily justify coffee, coke and alcohol as forms of water. We know the tap water is full of chlorine and fluoride, both of which are extremely bad for your health but we mindlessly allow the government to keep slowly poisoning  us anyway. We know the government has never ever been beneficial for the public no matter who is in charge and the elections are rigged and still we vote because they tell us to. We know the wars in the world are bullshit (well we should, there is enough evidence of the scam) but we keep cheering the troops on.

This is Insanity. There is so much crap going on in the world right now it’s becoming difficult to stay sane. Far too often, we rely on someone else to tell us what to do. Luckily there is no shortage of folk who think they have a valid opinion of how you should live. Doctors, priests, politicians, pretty plastic people on TV, even well-meaning family members. Besides your family, everyone else is collecting a paycheck from telling us what to do. These are very stressful times in which we live, and it’s normal and ok to ask for guidance. But only we know what is best for us. If we’re not using these stressful times to re-evaluate, to test our beliefs, to look at life from another angle, we are not going to be that person we want to be or expect others to be.

We have already overcome the evolutionary forces that nature thrusts upon us. Now we must learn to overcome the vagaries of mind, biases of our narrow, limiting perceptions, to not be pushed around by petty differences, to learn how to integrate the baser 'negative' aspects of our nature and turn them into powerful, positive forces for 'good'.

This can only be achieved through unity and common goals, though not necessarily common beliefs. We must learn that our weakness is another's strength, that our strength is a compensation for our brother’s weaknesses. We must learn that weaknesses are not shortcomings. They are opportunities for growth, lessons to learn.

We all want change of some kind. Why not make some? Why wouldn’t you want to be better person? Do you think you are all you can be? Don’t limit yourself like that. Don’t let others prejudice limit you like that.

This era is your test. It’s your time to grow. Show yourself what you can do. The evolutionary development of your mind is your responsibility. It is a choice. A choice to evolve or to continue to react out of instinct. Acting out of instinct was valuable when we knew little or nothing of the world around, of social interactions, when it meant our survival. Now, we have everything we need to survive. We have the knowledge. We have the technology. We have a choice how we use it. Having these things makes our survival a no-brainer, allowing us something we never had before - the ability and choice to develop ourselves, to free ourselves from the fears that hold us back (whether or not we admit to them, they are there).

We have the power to make positive change for all mankind, both present and future. This change starts with the individual. As Gandhi said, “Be the change we want to see in the world”.

Give it a go. Amaze yourself. Be inspired and Inspire.

My Best to You.