If we were to define liberty as the “freedom from control, interference, obligation, restriction, hampering conditions, etc.”, as can be found in the dictionary, we could soon discover that the pace and the degree to which man has evolved is directly related to the amount of freedom the human has enjoyed.
Oh, let’s not argue about the finer points of mans’ evolution, as some who think the progress man has made, particularly in most recent history, has not been to their liking. It’s unfortunate their focus seems to be on the negative. In most simple terms, man has gone from caveman to watching movies on a tiny hand-held device. Or if you prefer, from the Garden of Eden to the point where we can successfully transplant a vital organ from one human being to another.
How did we get here to where we are today?
Over the weekend I received a memo from Dr. Valerius Geist. To be completely forthcoming, it was his memo that set my mind to thinking and thus the inspiration for this article. Dr. Geist writes:
I have been deeply involved with other matters, in part with human evolution trying to put in place the developments of Arts, crafts, music, language etc. The book will be entitled “Condemned to Art”. I want to know how come we have that capacity, how it came about etc.
I have written often about liberty and like most all of us, its focus is the freedom from political repression, a tyrannical government, a loss of human rights such as speech and owning guns, etc. Never have I seriously considered the role freedom has played and still does, on such developments as Arts, crafts, music, language, etc.. I guess you could say I am a classic example of taking things for granted.
Dr. Geist tells me that without “total security” from the “freedom from control, interference, obligation, restriction, hampering conditions, etc.”, man could not have evolved music, dancing, etc. We are witness to this very consideration today. Simply look at the countries that live under a repressive government. Unless it has become a national obsession, like perhaps the ballet, are these repressive nations the leaders in the world in such things as the Arts and Sciences, production, innovation, among other things?
It would seem then that with the addition of any form of limitation of our freedoms, this evolution becomes hampered. Once again history shows us that liberty-seeking men have always striven to tear down the barriers that restrict innovation, production, our unalienable rights of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. If we know these things, then why do we work toward restricting them so?
Dr. Geist, however, puts a bit of a different twist on his thoughts on the evolution of the Arts, crafts, music, etc. of which he speaks. He examines mans’ learning capacity to control “predators” in order that they have the “total security” to grow.
Otherwise singing and dancing merely advertises to them where they can find the next tasty meal. Ditto for nightly gatherings alive with noisy activities, like banging rocks for tools, before we went to sleep. And we did this on the ground, and despite snoring and baby crying we still lived to see the morning sun, despite a parade of large predators. In short, excluding predators from our lives was vital. That was the first miracle of human evolution: producing a totally secure stage on which human cultural activities, noisy & showy, could unfold.
According to Geist’s thoughts, born of necessity, need and want was predator control. Unleashed and uncontrolled large predators certainly put a damper on things, restricting movement, freedom to explore and create. This population of predators also seriously cut into the food supply. If man were to evolve further, he must learn to restrict this element that curtailed liberty.
An old adage reminds us that those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it. Today, we have people who think uncontrolled predators is what “balances” our natural ecosystems. The question I always have had is, who decides what a “balance” is? While some may argue that we shouldn’t be controlling predators for the sake of providing hunting opportunities, little do they realize such an activity is still extremely vital to the evolution of man. And when we see ranchers and citizens alike restricted in their liberties, we know that growth is being curtailed and for what purpose? There are readers of this very blog who tell me on a regular basis about how their lives have been restricted due to too many predators.
Does it seem that our society is moving in the wrong direction? If you and I believe that the supreme element of mans’ evolution is liberty, why do we fight so hard to restrict that freedom?
Tom Remington
