How did we get here?

So fractured, so divided, so intolerant of others, especially those that are "different" than us, so selfish and parochial, so narrow-minded and unaccepting.

The way I see it, it started with humans dividing into different groups and becoming possessive and territorial:

• Individuals forming families

• Families forming clans

• Clans forming tribes

• Tribes forming hamlets

• Hamlets forming towns

• Towns forming cities

• Cities forming countries

• Etc., etc., etc.

.. and at the root of it all, a collective mistrust of those who live on "the other side," because even though we all came from the same root, the same species, the same biology, the competition for sustenance made us mistrust one another; the scarcity of goods made us avaricious and greedy. To the point that we no longer compete for just what we need to survive, but for the mere satisfaction of having more; being more, better, not because we need it, but because it satisfies the ego. It makes us feel worthwhile, superior. It gives us a reason to live.

Is there any hope for achieving harmony? For reaching the point when we will no longer need to kill each other in order to feel safe or satisfied? Is there any way for humanity to learn to stop wanting what others have, to stop "coveting thy neighbor's wife (goods)?"

... Not likely...