Foragers were probably equivalent to baboons, and farming made it much worse.
In a forager tribe, when the abuse became too horrible, there was an option to leave. Farming allowed this abuse to grow astronomically. A forager alpha male couldn’t make his tribe build him a pyramid.
Foragers were probably equivalent to baboons, and farming made it much worse.
Certain people claim that traditional farmer sexual norms (lifelong monogamous marriage where only the husband worked for money) were better than the forager ways that we’re reverting to, and it’s not totally obvious they’re wrong. (IMO neither is a Pareto improvement over the other, so which one is better depends on what you mean by “better”, and in any event farmers weren’t the same everywhere. And in many places the top 0.1% of farmers behaved like foragers anyway.)
When using phrases like ‘terrible places for omegas to live’, the should-universe is the only basis of comparison unless I want to just throw up my hands, give up my something to protect, and become a moral nihilist. I wouldn’t recommend it; I’ve tried it and it’s not very fun.
Certain neoreactionaries claim otherwise, and it’s not completely obvious to me that they’re wrong. (My position is that there are tradeoffs and neither system is a Pareto improvement over the other, so which one is better depends on what you mean by ‘better’.)
Foragers were probably equivalent to baboons, and farming made it much worse.
In a forager tribe, when the abuse became too horrible, there was an option to leave. Farming allowed this abuse to grow astronomically. A forager alpha male couldn’t make his tribe build him a pyramid.
Certain people claim that traditional farmer sexual norms (lifelong monogamous marriage where only the husband worked for money) were better than the forager ways that we’re reverting to, and it’s not totally obvious they’re wrong. (IMO neither is a Pareto improvement over the other, so which one is better depends on what you mean by “better”, and in any event farmers weren’t the same everywhere. And in many places the top 0.1% of farmers behaved like foragers anyway.)
This fits my observations and intuitions, as well.
Forager tribes are egalitarian in comparison with farmers. In an absolute sense they’re still pretty terrible places for omegas to live.
By “absolute” you seem to mean ‘relative to the should-universe’.
When using phrases like ‘terrible places for omegas to live’, the should-universe is the only basis of comparison unless I want to just throw up my hands, give up my something to protect, and become a moral nihilist. I wouldn’t recommend it; I’ve tried it and it’s not very fun.
Certain neoreactionaries claim otherwise, and it’s not completely obvious to me that they’re wrong. (My position is that there are tradeoffs and neither system is a Pareto improvement over the other, so which one is better depends on what you mean by ‘better’.)