On a Side Note; Are we born equal?

Some hypocrite was articulating on the idea of equality on TV again this afternoon. "We are all born equal...we live in a society where equality underpins how it works...."

Blah blah blah...I'm so tired of idealistic hypocrites sounding so self-righteous about it.

“Survival of the fittest” – nature has laid down the very rule for us mortals to live by. In our contemporary world where the idea of fraternity is fashionable, this is going to sound like the most ignorant thing one can say…

You may not like the idea of hierarchy, but you cannot deny its existence or influence.

Since time immemorial, our society has been operating on the basis of hierarchies. We have this model of different hierarchies with (always) the dominant groups on the pinnacles. Whether you like it or not, “power” determines your place in these hierarchies. “Power” is derived from domination, in terms of number, wealth, political influence, etc –depending on the contexts in which power is examined.

You climb to the top of hierarchies, if you outnumber “the others”; outwit “the others”; outdo “the others” in whatever aspects you can. One way or another, you find your place in different hierarchies. It is a perpetual struggle of power between the dominant group and the subordinates. No matter what you do, there is always a dominant group. It is just a question of whether you are part of it.

This is our destiny. You don’t fight it - you work around it.

Now if you believe me, I do want to believe in equality. But equality is a result of equal opportunities or equal access to resources, which unfortunately is something yet to be found in human society. People are not born equal. To suggest otherwise is, in fact, a hypocritical act. Tell me why kids in developed countries are spending hundreds of dollars on toys when 8 millions starving children from third world countries are struggling to live? Does the idea of equality make more sense out of this unequal situation? Does that idea make us more sympathetic towards the sufferings in this world? I don’t think so.

Equality is an ideal, something for us – people who are well-fed and well-bred to dream of. But before you indulge in the luxury of daydreaming, you can do something more constructive to this world.

As I always say, empty words don’t help.

Help eradicate poverty...

Donate Now