Venting Survival of the fittest?

[sotomie]

People like to say life is about survival of the fittest and I think they're right. I just don't think I'm one of the ones who survived. Some people are built for this world. They're ambitious and competitive. They know how to network, negotiate, and keep moving no matter how many times life knocks them down.

When I'm gone, they'll start searching for reasons that don't exist. The truth is I simply lost against life. Maybe they'll tell themselves I fought until the end. I hope they do, it's a kinder story than the truth. The truth is I stopped believing I belonged in the race a long time ago. You can't win a race you've already walked away from.

Perhaps that's what "survival of the fittest" really means. The ones who continue believing tomorrow is worth preparing for.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I find it more disturbing than that really. Who do you need to be to do well in this life? I imagine people with ruthless, narcissistic, even sociopathic traits have the edge.

Perhaps a genius or very gifted athlete or artist will have enough raw talent to do well- no matter how little confidence they have. That's only because other, less talented but probably exploitative people will realise they can make money from them though. Who ends up with more money/ higher status? The CEO or the clever people working for them?

The CEO is of course clever in their own way. Although, I suspect most of the time, they are more on the devious side. They have no qualms about exploiting and trampling and decimating others to feather their own nests.

I suppose I tend to see it more that- I simply don't want to be a part of that. If that's what it takes to achieve then- I'd rather not particicate.

That's not to say that confidence is bad but, I think to have the edge, a certain ruthlessness needs to be present. And those at the very top can be outright cruel. Why should we put cruelty on a pedestal? Maybe it isn't so different from the ruthlessness of apex predators in the animal kingdom but- given the choice- who wants to be fodder for beings higher up the food chain?

Metaphorically speaking- if you could rise to the top- would it necessarily make you happy to know your wealth and status is built on exploiting everything around you? Maybe you could find a noble way to do it- treating everyone fairly. Would you still be able to compete with the companies that don't?

 

[sotomie]

I find it more disturbing than that really. Who do you need to be to do well in this life? I imagine people with ruthless, narcissistic, even sociopathic traits have the edge.

Perhaps a genius or very gifted athlete or artist will have enough raw talent to do well- no matter how little confidence they have. That's only because other, less talented but probably exploitative people will realise they can make money from them though. Who ends up with more money/ higher status? The CEO or the clever people working for them?

The CEO is of course clever in their own way. Although, I suspect most of the time, they are more on the devious side. They have no qualms about exploiting and trampling and decimating others to feather their own nests.

I suppose I tend to see it more that- I simply don't want to be a part of that. If that's what it takes to achieve then- I'd rather not particicate.

That's not to say that confidence is bad but, I think to have the edge, a certain ruthlessness needs to be present. And those at the very top can be outright cruel. Why should we put cruelty on a pedestal? Maybe it isn't so different from the ruthlessness of apex predators in the animal kingdom but- given the choice- who wants to be fodder for beings higher up the food chain?

Metaphorically speaking- if you could rise to the top- would it necessarily make you happy to know your wealth and status is built on exploiting everything around you? Maybe you could find a noble way to do it- treating everyone fairly. Would you still be able to compete with the companies that don't?

I agree. The people who rise the fastest have an easier time treating other human beings as numbers. The market doesn't care whether you're kind, it cares whether you're profitable and exploitable. That's the harsh reality.

I hate that human has built a world where your worth is constantly confused with your market value. The first question people ask isn't "Are you a good person?" It's more so "What do you do? How much do you make? What can you contribute?" The moment you stop contributing, people start wondering what your purpose is. I just happened to be one of the people who couldn't keep up. I don't resent the winners nearly as much as I resent a game where the losers are treated as though they failed morally instead of simply walked out.