One thing that argues against some of my ideas about “human nature” being a strongly fixed thing is how differently we live now compared to our recent evolutionary past, and how many people seem to crave existing in ways that no human has ever lived before — such as the pod life aficionados and those who are afraid of the world and vow to continue pandemic-instantiated behaviors forever.

No human in history (outside of a few very rare monks) has ever lived as disconnected from humanity as these people seem fine with, though of course the poor social simulation allowed by the internet make the actual case on the ground somewhat different.

Unlike most, though I strike a strident tone on this blog, I like thinking of things that knock down my ideas and dearly-held assumptions. I’ve changed my mind on tons of things over the years, and altered a lot of my presuppositions and conclusions.

I mean, why wouldn’t you in light of stronger evidence?