Quote

If two people stare at each other for more than a few seconds, it means they are about to either make love or fight. Something similar might be said about human societies. If two nearby societies are in contact for any length of time, they will either trade or fight. The first is non-zero-sum social integration, and the second ultimately brings it.

Robert Wright

Change background

T
T
T

Change font

TAGS & TOPICS

Robert Wright
People
Human
Fight
Zero
Humans
Either
Staring
First
Fighting
Length
Nearby
Mean
Means
Ultimately
Stare
Something
Social
Contact
Integration
Make
Two
Brings
Societies
Time
Might
Trade
Seconds
Love
Firsts
Second
Similar

More quotes by Robert Wright

Image
God knows greed won't vanish. Neither will hatred or chauvanism. Human nature is a stubborn thing. But it isn't beyond control. Even if our core impulses cant be banished, they can be tempered and redirected.
Robert Wright
Image
Next time you see an unblemished expanse of grass, think about the chemicals that probably got dumped in your vicinity to create it. Are you grateful for that?
Robert Wright
Image
In the great non zero sum games of history, if you're part of the problem, then you'll likely be a victim of the solution.
Robert Wright
Image
Humans have various ways of coping with extended stress, and one is the anticipation of a better time. Here, as with retribution, there is often a kind of symmetry: the more intense the stress and the more hopeless the situation, the more fabulous the coming times that are anticipated.
Robert Wright
Image
Like a lawyer, the human brain wants victory, not truth and, like a lawyer, it is sometimes more admirable for skill than virtue.
Robert Wright
Image
Actually, there is a sense in which polygynous marriage has not been the historical norm - even where polygyny is permitted, multiple wives are generally reserved for a relatively few men who can afford them or qualify via formal rank. For eons and eons, most marriages have been monogamous, even though most societies haven't been
Robert Wright
Image
Your brain may give birth to any technology, but other brains will decide whether the technology thrives. The number of possible technologies is infinite, and only a few pass this test of affinity with human nature.
Robert Wright
Image
Understanding the often unconscious nature of genetic control is the first step toward understanding that—in many realms, not just sex—we’re all puppets, and our best hope for even partial liberation is to try to decipher the logic of the puppeteer.
Robert Wright
Image
Jesus is not from Georgia. Jesus does not speak English. And Jesus is not a member of the NRA.
Robert Wright
Image
Next time you see a yardful of sprouting dandelions, note that they look remarkably like things we call flowers. And later, when the flowers turn into fluff balls, look closely at one of those fluff balls and ask yourself whether it's really so unattractive.
Robert Wright
Image
...human beings are a species splendid in their array of moral equipment, tragic in their propensity to misuse it, and pathetic in their ignorance of the misuse.
Robert Wright
Image
Once you the forces that govern behavior,it's harder to blame the behaver
Robert Wright
Image
Being a person's true friend means endorsing the untruths he holds dearest.
Robert Wright