{"id":2585,"date":"2020-08-31T01:09:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-31T01:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/?p=2585"},"modified":"2021-01-03T17:38:28","modified_gmt":"2021-01-03T17:38:28","slug":"humanitarian-misanthropy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/?p=2585","title":{"rendered":"Humanitarian Misanthropy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SALWITAY - Humanitarian Misanthropy\" width=\"695\" height=\"391\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0soCp59fuBk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption>Imperial Femto Target Drone &#8211; A 1:9e74806 scale replica target drone created for highly efficient femto-scale wargames conducted within the Schwarzschild radius of a Planters Peanut shell.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>At some point I stumbled on the term misanthropic humanitarian, or humanitarian misanthrope to describe my general sentiment towards humanity. I don\u2019t think anyone would argue that I\u2019m a misanthrope, but the humanitarian part might be more debatable. And misanthropy seems like it\u2019s mutually exclusive to humanitarianism, but I actually think they can be complimentary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I think my brand of misanthropy can be a basis for a kind of humanitarianism. Definitely not the same kind as actual good people that take risks and make sacrifices to help people, that\u2019s a more applied humanitarianism that does actual good. This is a more theoretical framework that doesn\u2019t help anyone but just arrogantly suggests that if we all thought this way the world would magically be a better place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m not suggesting you have to be a full-on misanthrope to be a humanitarian, but I think some of the principles of misanthropy can be applied to humanitarian goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So I\u2019m a misanthrope, what\u2019s that mean? Basically it means that as a rule I don\u2019t trust humans. Not as a species, not as a civilization, not even as individuals, and definitely not in large groups. Some of that is because I think the word \u2018trust\u2019 is too subjective to mean anything, but somehow it still feels right to say I just don\u2019t trust humans. To me trust is just a weirdly sentimental way of measuring the accuracy with which you can predict or rely on a desired behavioral outcome, and by that definition, humans are very untrustworthy animals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But trust has all this intent and value attached to it, and I don\u2019t not trust humans because I think they\u2019re all bad people or evil or any of that nonsense, it\u2019s just because we\u2019re incredibly complex and the more complex things become the more bizarrely unpredictable their behavior. And maybe I\u2019m socially inept or whatever, but I\u2019m talking about history here- sacrificing to sun gods, wars between incestuous ruling families and over religions, steam powered flat earther rockets 50 years after the moon landing, like 80% of the internet, this is humanity, just absolute batshit craziness on tap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s partially biology. We\u2019re mammals, and mammals are all pretty nuts, plus all life is nuts. Evolution works with what works, not with what makes sense or doesn\u2019t suck. Humans are the product of what worked on Earth, and we do have some amazing advantages, but we\u2019re just complicated animals, and even simple animals are nuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But we don\u2019t really talk about trust with animals unless we\u2019re anthropomorphizing them like with dogs. We describe wild animals as \u2018unpredictable\u2019 sometimes but I think we know intuitively they\u2019re not, their nuttiness is within well established parameters so whether we say it or not it\u2019s pretty easy to \u2018trust\u2019 animals, because we trust them to be animals. That\u2019s really the only kind of trust that makes any sense to me. But if you just trust things to be what they are, then trust doesn\u2019t mean anything, but I guess that\u2019s kind of my point so, yeah&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But so I trust animals to be animals, and humans are animals, so why not trust humans to be humans? Well because like I just said- they\u2019re animals. The human part is not a given. Humans are precariously built out of animals and if much of anything goes wrong with that construction what\u2019s left is just the animal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We accept this on a sort of medical level. From full-on lobotomies to Phineas Gage to meth-brain and just regular old dementia, it\u2019s no secret that human minds can degrade into functionally different beings, sometimes to the point they are only human by biological standards. But those are the hard-core, obvious cases where the faculties necessary for doing human things are damaged so they just stop acting as much like a human.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But a lot of things can go wrong with people that are not really biological, and they continue to act exactly like humans. A sociopath is, for all intents and purposes, much better equipped to deal with the complexities of modern culture than someone burdened by empathy. They act more human than most humans, they\u2019re good at it, but- I don\u2019t think they\u2019re really being all that human. Obviously that puts a judgement on what human means, so I\u2019ll say I think \u2018human\u2019 is the part of \u2018human animal\u2019 that makes civilization together, and a sociopath doesn\u2019t seem like they\u2019re really using that part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our culture doesn\u2019t really teach much about the human-animal duality of human nature, so people tend to think of human beings as atomic things, you\u2019re born human and you die human, no matter how much of an animal or otherwise not a human you become along the way. So we may casually say a sociopath is an animal, but they really do get all the benefits of being a human being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And for moral clarity we it\u2019s probably best to say they\u2019re all still human. It\u2019s hard to argue the value of humans just saying all human life is sacred, full stop. And I think we can keep that value, but with a modified understanding that actually doing \u2018being\u2019 a human being is more than just being of the species homo sapien sapien.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately the whole \u2018human animal\u2019 thing is pretty easy to run afoul of the whole \u2018sanctify of human life\u2019 thing, because where do you draw the line except by literal species without the danger of some people being labeled less than human life? I think the simple prevention is just don\u2019t think of human being as a permanent state, but a potential, and give the whole species credit for the potential no matter what. That way you can say accurately when people are animals, but you can\u2019t cross the line of treating them like animals because they have a body that has the potential to be human.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That said, I\u2019m not saying \u2018thou shalt not kill\u2019 or anything. If people try to kill you, I think it\u2019s acceptable to try to kill them right back. And there are some threats that cannot be neutralized any other way than permanently. But to me it\u2019s a pretty simple rule- if you can neutralize a threat without death, do that, if not- stay alive. In simpler terms I can deal with a death penalty for a stranded colony with no means to effectively neutralize dangerous prisoners, but not in places with the means to build literal prison cities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also while I\u2019m on the death penalty I\u2019ll say I\u2019ve actually come around to the position that there is a moral basis for a death penalty even in prosperous civilizations, but only for abuse of public power. To abuse public power is to undermine the basis of civilization. If someone tries to make you do something against your will, you have the right to fight them. But if they wield the power of the state, you may willingly, or unknowingly give up that right. So it seems fair that the price for wielding the power of submission is enhanced punishment for its misuse. I also think that this is the only case where capital punishment actually would be a deterrent. I don\u2019t think violent psychopaths are pensive enough about mortality for a death penalty to really change their behavior, but I\u2019d prefer anyone who assumed public power would be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sorry, I kind of accidentally then on purpose shoehorned my death penalty shpeil in there, but back to the thing&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So the gist is- I\u2019m misanthropic because humans are animals, and animals are nuts, but I don\u2019t not trust animals, and even though humans are sometimes animals they\u2019re still humans and we can\u2019t not treat them like humans, so what the hell am I talking about?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m just trying to get around to the point that to be a very effective humanitarian, especially at large scales, you have to recognize and account for the human animal. We\u2019re weak, imminently corruptible, and intrinsically vain, but- we can help each other rise above it, and that\u2019s kind of nice. Maybe misanthropy takes it too far, and brings the implication of disappointment or something, which goes against the point that this is about looking at the \u2018human animal\u2019 dispassionately, but I like the juxtaposition of misanthropic humanitarianism as a reminder that responsible compassion isn\u2019t always snuggly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It really helps when you need to look at humans as data. We are raw data, sucks to think of ourselves that way but we are, and that data is valuable. Humans actually are fairly predictable in large numbers. Being a little misanthropic can help you get over the fact that we\u2019re just numbers, and being a little humanitarian can help you use your ability to get over our statistical predictability and use it to create beneficial outcomes for human beings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you want horses to do something, do you don\u2019t moralize about it being the right thing to do, or why they should have done it. You create the conditions in which that horse will be most likely to do the thing you want them to do. There\u2019s no judgement, just observation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course you can create conditions that make the horse do it because it\u2019s terrified not to, or because it associates it with a reward. Both can be called for in various circumstances. But most handlers tend to understand that horses are better to you when you\u2019re better to them, but more importantly, they\u2019re better when you create the conditions that are favorable to them being better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also just to be clear none of this is an argument for philosophical zombies. Everything feels, even sociopaths. I do think some meta-cognitivie capacity varies wildly between humans, but I don\u2019t think that\u2019s a critical defining factor of the human experience, it just can be. And again, it\u2019s the potential to be human that grants the rights of humanity, so it doesn\u2019t matter either way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So that\u2019s the main point I want to make about humanitarian misanthropy, the human-animal thing, but it actually goes a little further into cultural connections for me too. I don\u2019t advocate this level of misanthropy for everyone, and it\u2019s not as well coupled to humanitarianism, but I think the best way to avoid an us vs them mentality is to not be an us.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The \u2018them\u2019 part is pretty hard to ignore. I see \u2018them\u2019 everywhere, but everytime I think I find an \u2018us\u2019, it turns out to be another them, or just a few of us with a bunch of them hanging around confusing things. So for expediency I\u2019ve just taken to assuming there is no us. Or I guess I\u2019ll qualify that by saying there is no \u2018us\u2019 beyond people you\u2019re on a first-name basis with, and even there- people change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There\u2019s a lot of focus on human\u2019s destructive tendency to identify \u2018the other\u2019 as the enemy, but I think the easily disprovable \u2018us\u2019 part is what creates the unfalsifiable \u2018other\u2019 part. But as many times as the \u2018us\u2019 is disproven, the \u2018other\u2019 remains compelling. Best way out, just be a \u2018me\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sounds too lonely to be right though, right? Because humans are social creatures, etc\u2026 yeah, fine. I\u2019m not saying you have to be a hermit over it. You can hang out with people, and like I said- people know actually know by the sound of their voice can be your \u2018us\u2019, just don\u2019t join any clubs. That seems like a great rule to me. And by clubs I mean anything. Political parties, religions, \u2018isms\u2019 of any kind, maybe even fan clubs, but that\u2019s a bit too literal. You speak for yourself on your own behalf and no one else\u2019s, always and forever, and no one else can speak on your behalf by group association. Every club you join inherits some of your character and will, but you can\u2019t control how other members use that association, so I consider it irresponsible to grant it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also the jackie gleason thing- won\u2019t be a part of any club that would have me as a member. Great recognition of the paradox of self-standards. You should never meet your own standards, so if you meet someone elses, theirs aren\u2019t as good as yours, but that\u2019s not really a misanthropic humanitarian reasoning, just a good one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At some point I stumbled on the term misanthropic humanitarian, or humanitarian misanthrope to describe my general sentiment towards humanity. I don\u2019t think anyone would argue that I\u2019m a misanthrope, but the humanitarian part might be more debatable. And misanthropy seems like it\u2019s mutually exclusive to humanitarianism, but I actually think they can be complimentary. <a href='http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/?p=2585' class='excerpt-more'>[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2585"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2585"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2586,"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2585\/revisions\/2586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/funkboxing.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}