History Will Repeat Itself Until We Evolve Past It

I am not sure my title conveys the thesis of my thought.

Democracy is an attempt at keeping the power of governance in the hands of the people, keeping it out of the “hands of the few”. In the current political sphere in the USA, it feels like most people are controlled by television and media. There is a great deal of disagreement but very little quality discussion. While the media stirs the pot and keeps the minds of the people distracted (and thus their hands too), political power is slowly but surely concentrating into the hands of the few.

Over time, the few eventually treat the masses too poorly and the masses revolt and it all resets.

Looking at this through an evolutionary lens, it almost looks as though this “reset button” is the evolutionary rejection of various forms of governance. Ergo, the few must be the type of people who are not selfish and who govern in the interest of the masses. Otherwise they ensure their own eventual demise.

If the masses could remain well educated enough to not be so easily cowed by shiny images, then perhaps we would reach the next stage in evolution — world peace.

Feels pretty distant right now. We need a more sustained push for education.