99%

Look at any other human near you.

At the barista making your coffee.

At the homeless person wrapped in a sleeping bag, tucked into the overhang of an abandoned storefront.

At your parent, child, partner.

Look at the person you consider to be your worst enemy.  Look at the person who is your most precious friend.

All of them--all of us--are at least 99% alike genetically. (1)  At least.

Think about that.

No matter how we differ in culture, beliefs, skin color, hair, eyes, shape, religion, political beliefs, family placement, personal choices, finances, career, talents, preferences, hobbies, abilities...

we are still at least 99% alike in terms of our most basic building blocks.


Compare this to other living creatures. Genetically speaking we are:

60-75% similar to a chicken (2)

84% similar to a dog (3)

88% similar to a rat (or other rodent) (2)

98.8% similar to a chimpanzee (3)


Now of course, this is a broad, sweeping comparison, and as I am not a geneticist this is a spectacularly nuance-less set of comparisons.

However my point stands.

As our human species tilts into a future with ever-increasing intolerance, ever-growing violence and ever-rising national and global conflicts, we need to consider why it is we insist on hating each other.

We are in a global casino, betting our existence--personal and collective--on a game of blackjack that is rigged.  If we keep playing this game by the same flawed and  superficial rules, we will always, always lose--until there is nothing left to lose.

Isn't it time to walk away from the game and find a new, better set of rules to live by?

A set of rules that encompasses scientific fact as well as the human capacity for ideals and inspiration.

I think Carl Sagan was right:

“The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.” (4)


...and our starstuff is all equally beautiful, equally precious and ultimately equally fragile.







Sources:

1. http://genetics.thetech.org/original_news/news38

2. https://www.genome.gov/12514316/2004-release-researchers-compare-chicken-human-genomes/

3. http://education.seattlepi.com/animals-share-human-dna-sequences-6693.html

4. https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/3237312-cosmos