January 20, 2004

Every week it seems that geneticists uncover another gene that is linked to human behavior. There are obesity genes, alcoholic genes, angry genes and depression genes. Every human characteristic seems to have a genetic foundation. Throughout our long evolution our genetic code has been shaping our lives while simultaneously being shaped itself by the ramifications of those same lives; the same way people shape societies while societies shape people. Therefore I think it would be a safe bet that one of these days soon scientists will uncover what I have dubbed The Peasant Gene.

Throughout history human societies have mostly comprised a large mass of semi-slaves, a.k.a. peasants, dominated and exploited by any number of kings, queens, warlords, landlords, dictators, tyrants, Republicans, Democrats and of course the random lunatic. Countless generations of constant subordination would inevitably create within it’s victims a genetic proclivity to accept and even embrace the clutches of a ruler since to do otherwise had historically resulted in a low survival rate. After centuries of the master providing the entire framework of a person’s life many of them lost all capacity for self-determination.

Europe is a perfect example of this process. Millennia of monarchy by the few and utter servitude by the rest seems to have imprinted the populace with a marked aversion for any meaningful personal liberty. Some European nations have had experiments with freedom for relatively brief lengths of time but it never seemed to really take and those that didn’t revert to various forms of tyranny and barbarism became third world socialist back waters. The various entities of Europe are even now trying to fashion themselves into a huge socialist confederacy that bears an increasingly strong resemblance to that ultimate Peasant Paradise, the old Soviet Union.

A major contributing factor to the astounding success of early America was that our founding citizens were mostly people in whom the better genes of humanity were manifest. They left their native lands for many of the reasons I’ve already mentioned and so a high proportion of our original population were men and women for whom freedom was literally a part of them. While this of course contributed to the unfortunate draining of the European gene pool it created a flood of possibilities on this side of the Atlantic.

Relevant to my theme is the tale of two revolutions; ours and that of the French. Although inspired by the miraculous success of America against England, the French revolution was one of desperation, not of enlightenment. It is well known that the oppressed learn oppression and after ten years of self inflicted brutality and chaos, the peasants of France were only too happy to grovel their way under the boot heels of new monarchs in order to get away from each other. Of course, there were more than a few here in the colonies who did not approve of too much personal liberty, let alone rebellion, and when our own war of liberation began many of these fled north and established themselves in Canada. Enough said.

Although unaware of the molecular biology involved, those who are inclined, probably by their personal genetic code, to try to rule the masses have known for ages that many people will easily submit to any power they see as stronger than themselves so long as said power will guarantee their existence in return. They also know that there is always a faction that sees nothing as greater than the free individual. So the ruling power of the moment will use their might to try to eliminate those in whom the Peasant Gene is not dominant. Many laws have been made with no intention of protecting society from any threat but simply to target behavior peculiar to this group and punish it with ostentatious severity. Even today in our own great nation, much of what comes out of Washington is really no more than telling people what to do, just to see who will and who won’t do it.

By the same means the subservient are rewarded for their eternal compliancy with legislative scraps from the political table, scraps from the banquet which they themselves provided. This leads to a kind of social selective breeding via politics. Just as the farmer will cull any livestock that may show atavistic tendencies, so will rulers always seek to nullify those who do not need to be ruled. Inherent servility may be an aberration yet it is one that has been cultivated by the circumstances of civilization.

But It’s good to remember that in order for us to survive for millions of years against giant beasts, ice ages and each other the Human genetic code is a work of great power and beauty. And those of us who truly are Human; who will not be another’s livestock and who have no inclinations toward Peasantry, we are the toughest sons and daughters of bitches the world has ever known.

©2004 Lee Robinson

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