Testing, Testes...

Men, as I've mentioned before, are frequent idiots. We will do things that at first glance (and second, and third, and...) seem remarkably stupid; often to impress women, but they're not a requirement. Other guys or even no one at all will provide a suitable audience.

I will place you 100-1 odds that it was a man who decided to squeeze a piece of a cow and drink whatever came out (a neolithic frat hazing ritual, perhaps?). It was a undoubtedly a guy who invented skull trepanning. And how many women do you think chose to fly kites in a freakin' thunderstorm?

It's not a coincidence that Icarus was Daedalus' son rather than his daughter: his daughter would have called him insane for trying to fly with wax wings in the first place and gone back to picking the lock.

This stupidity does, in fact, have a purpose: guys tend to find stuff. And find out stuff. And often die doing it, sure, but so long as SOMEONE survives, the species gains knowledge ("I guess those are poisonous, then...").

Unfortunately, the need for having an expendable, hormonally charged population has diminished greatly, what with the invention of the scientific method and research and a better understanding of how the world works. But the instinct is still there.

So now we compete with each other over... well... what can only be considered trivialities. Driftglass has a comment on the theme that Blue Gal was discussing (see previous posts below). I think he's basically correct in theme (especially the bit about the dominance of God), but I also am certain that we can avoid those socially idiotic pitfalls. Genetically and socially speaking, cooperation has far more advantages for us at this stage than competition does.

I can only go by personal experience, of course, but I'm a fairly non-competitive guy by nature. According to the "From Mars etc" books, I'm as much female in nature as male (as they consider the definitions). I'm a lifelong nerd who (amusingly enough) ended up being rated a "good match" with half the girls in the school by a computer dating system.

They declined to follow up.

Yet somehow: I'm married to the coolest person I've ever met, I get what I want with what can only be considered alarming frequency, and I'm enjoying a very nice little life.

When I've encountered a so-called Alpha Type, it's the simplest thing in the world to use a bit of psychic judo on him. The stupid and/or belligerent ones tend to get confused, and the smart ones eventually let their guard down, and we can communicate like humans, which is a nice bonus. Competitive people are bewildered by non-competitive ones. Which, I suppose, means I regard such encounters in a competitive frame of mind.

Bugger.

Nothing like taking an hour to lose an argument with yourself.