Aping Humans

Saw this pic and couldn't resist.  Of course, humans are apes; what sets us apart is that we've domesticated ourselves.

 

Domestication is about specialized collaboration, a shared reliance on each other's abilities so that we don't have to do it all by ourselves.  You can go fast alone, but to go far, you need to work together.

 

Because we got here (civilization) first, there's a certain amount of pressure on humans to set the tone, much as parents do for their children.  We tend not to do this very well, but the it's rare that we consciously try to.

 

That's the difference between leaders and followers, or between gardeners and Sheppards - it's up to us to set the example we want to see in the world and treat our shared environment not like a mine, but a garden.

 

Other species are aping what we do regardless; does it not make sense to consciously nurture the image we would like them to embody?