Dog Eat Dog

Dinner was a rather interesting affair today - it was 'find what you can and eat it before someone else does' night. For someone used to a semi organised everyone-sits-together-at-the-table mode it was quite the novelty. The quickest prospered and anyone who dithered missed out. Fortunately (for some) our tastes are pretty disparate so there wasn't too much competition, though there was an amusing three-way battle over a lone corn fritter.

It's amazing how well survival of the fittest works (that being the opinion of one who's fairly fit): the strong become stronger and the weak weaker. It's not a kind principle, and thus is not widely lauded by civilised humans, but there is no more effective method of quality control. Those with defects and flaws are weeded out, while others who are particularly suited to survive flourish and go on to create new life. Some say this reflects the cruel character of our world, while others applaud nature for its ability to self-regulate. Personally I don't sit easy in either camp, as I don't believe the rule is in itself cruel, nor am I inclined to praise mathematical probabilities or any theoretical Gaia. I have another bone to pick with this law - it is based firmly and unshakably on a dog-eat-dog foundation. In other words, it is large-scale selfishness organised. So what's wrong with that? Well, nothing - but if you begin with the axiom of a God whose primary attribute is charity, it's a little difficult to fit into the picture. It works so well, but it's the polar opposite of 'one sacrificing itself for another'. What's the story? I'm not talking about 'the problem of evil' or anything like that - that's theological childsplay. This is something much more fundamental and integral to the fabric of the universe. Second law of thermodynamics in a nutshell: everything is becoming more disorganised (read dying or decaying); the only way that a thing can become more organised is to increase the disorganisation of something else. Why is the world set up like this? really don't know; I have no answers this time. Perhaps no one will ever find a solution to this enigma, but knowing humans (and myself) there will always be those who will try.