Admiring Neanderthals

 

I have been contemplating lately of what it would be like to be living as a hunter or gather or a Neanderthal. I’ve mentioned that to my friend Paul and he joked and gave a clever response. We both laughed. Have you ever wondered about living in those times?  An article in the December 6, 2020 edition of The New York Times sparked my interest. This brief disquisition pertains to our ancient cousins.

Neanderthals inhabited this earth roughly 350,000 years ago. Approximately 40,000 years ago they vanished when we Sapiens arrived on the scene. There are many anthropological theories as to the demise of our ancient cousins: 1. Did we kill them off or have a hand in their demise? 2. Did they assimilate into our population? 3. Were they on the brink of extinction? 4. Were climatic condition so unfavorable? 5. Were they inferior-their head size is equal to ours; they were physically fit and they had dexterous hands?

First, let’s take a look at some facts pertaining to our Sapiens accomplishments: 1.We are living in the worst pandemic facing our country 2. We have record unemployment and economic hardship statistics 3. Our elected congressional government has a sadistic way of providing monetary assistance 4. Our current president is threatening a non-peaceful transition of power 5. We are facing a massive foreign government cyber-attack from Russia 6. We have record opioid, suicide and alcohol-related deaths 7. We have polluted our oceans, rivers, and streams and ravished our earth, animal and marine inhabitants 8. Our Doomsday Clock moves closer to midnight 9. Climate change with its fires, hurricanes, melting glaciers etc. threaten all mankind 10. We have another month or so of a paranoid, narcissistic, sociopathic man as the leader of the most powerful country in the world 11. Some have presented incorrect and misleading information, just look at the pictures of Neanderthals, and you’ll know what I mean.

On the other hand, let’s take a look at what we know about our cousins. Yes, they were driven by aggressive and sexual drives. These drives were necessary and appropriate for their survival. They were hunters and gatherers. They lived in small groups called bands. With their physiological capacity and with their endurance and small numbers, they could, with mutual cooperation and expertise, track and run down their prey. I know that’s true because I ran while Linda road her horse in a limited distance [25 miles] Camp Far West endurance ride. We met at the last veterinarian check and finished together in front of a number of other participants.

Females, the matriarchs, for the most part were the respected, and very important central figures. They gathered seeds, roots, fruits, nuts, berries etc.; provided warmth, comfort, sexual gratification and procreation was extremely important for their survival. They were the givers, trained, educated and took care of the young as well. With the likely absence of possession, jealousy might’ve been minimal. We know the concept of sin didn’t exist and more than likely sex was mutual, consensual and known for its benefit for the entire band. The matriarchs were good models and played a dominant role in their culture. There was equality between the sexes, in spite of the fact that we sapiens picture them erroneously dragging women by the hair to a cave.

 It’s been estimated that our cousins spent roughly 25% of their time finding and procuring food which meant they had plenty of time for sex and other activities. Because they were food gatherers, the land provided a good vegetarian diet. Perhaps, their attitude was if we do not eat today, we will eat tomorrow. Fasting for a day is in fact one health strategy for sapiens.

Our cousins regarded and respected nature. They were humanistic and kindred in their beliefs. Nature, the berries, the animals, the fish etc. were for all and not just for the few or powerful. They were not selfish but generous, altruistic and would share their bounty with others. There was no private property, no one owned nature, the land or its resources. It was a collective with a socialistic or Kibbutz attitude and practice. They were not exploitive and did not enslave each other. They had no need for a ruler nor did they disagree about who was the best god. Further, because of their social structure, there was an absence of envy, and exploitation as well no psychological need for possession, power, prestige, greed to compensate for insecurity. If exhibited the individual might be excluded from the band.

 They were intelligent and their brains were roughly the same size as ours. They lived in all climates and cleverly made body coverings or “clothes” depending upon the necessity. They made workable tools and figured out by that by mixing tree resin and bee wax they could produce and make an adhesive additive to connect stone with wooden handles. They were artists and drew on caves. Their pictures and depictions of people, animals, and their hunts described their way of life.

There is a belief that our ancient cousins did not kill or murder one another per 300 findings of bone, DNA, gene and grave excavations. They were not concerned about skin color, political or religious beliefs. They had no conspiracy ideas.  No weapons have been found nor have excavations revealed death by warfare or massacre. Of course, more data is needed and hopefully forthcoming for more definitive facts.

 We know they were skilled hunters however there was no need for a dominance-submissive culture. They respected the surplus in nature and even the killing of wild life for food. They killed to survive and not for displaying trophies.  There was no apparent economic stimulus or advantage for a full scale war based on the following: 1.The had a delicate balance of the birth to death ratio 2. The bands were poor as far as material goods and had little of value 3. Conquering slaves would present a problem and require providing more food 4. Psychologically they were generous, cooperative and believed in reciprocity and exhibited more “feminine” dominated attributes. 5. Likely they did not have a revenge motive either 6. There was an absence of male dominated chiefs, priests, medicine man, kings, emperors, dictators, or president hierarchies. The matriarchs were supreme 7. Self-centeredness, narcissism, physical aggression and lying behavior was not tolerated by the band.

Within the last 9,000 to 40,000 years of sapiens, we had an urban revolution with the following: 1. We have developed agriculture for wheat and barley, herding and taming husbandry 2. We possess dirt, technology, sand, water, space etc. so we can defend against 3. We have socio class systems of the privileged and the laborers, unequal division of labor and wealth, and disequilibrium between people-ruler-worker 4. We have boundaries, cities, town’s countries etc.  5. We innovated war, created kings or God’s representatives to be sadistic and cruel to defend and possess all types of things like flags, capitalism, religion, dirt etc. 6. We do not welcome intruders or immigrants 7.  We found ways to abuse and exploit man economically 8. We have economic and political wars in order to secure women, slaves, raw materials, and land in order to maintain a ruling dynasty or class 9.We are the land of the rich and poor 10. Democracy is permitted primarily for white skinned sapiens 11. We have unlimited racism 12. We have developed patriarchal rule in order to control others less desirable 13. With patriarchal power we have built things and have controlled the masses by fear, and irrational authority 14. We have built things in order to sadistically destroy, demolish and wipe out and murder all forms of life on this planet including more recently Dresden and Hiroshima.

Destructiveness  and murder is likely not innate in man but resulted as a consequence of civilization creation ;  private property; development of weaponry; man exploiting  man; idolizing rulers like Alexander, Genghis Khan, Caesar, Hitler etc. In other words, with patriarch domination we are failing. Sapiens have about 2%-3% of Neanderthals DNA. We need more of their genes, or with technology create a more sophisticated and smarter human with a very different character structure. Perhaps, more dominant feminine characteristics are the answer as well as the creation of a more civil civilization. Sapiens intelligence seems adequate but not man’s emotional intelligence with sadistic destruction; hate; greed; exploitation and selfishness. Emotionally, male sapiens get into trouble because of underlying anxiety and insecurities within evolution while creating a toxic and destructive society.

With that being said, there is a small glimmer of hope as anthropologists Ruth Benedict, Margaret Mead and others studied primitive societies. I would reframe primitive and call them civil. In studying the Zuni Pueblo Indians, the Mountain Arapesh, the Polar Eskimo and other societies, they found aggression but not significant amounts of murder and destructiveness toward their own kind.  

PS

Gail, a lover from the past, purchased a large poster of Raquel Welch from her One Million BC movie.  I hung it at the top of our stairs so I could see it every time I entered my apartment. I am still smiling.