Know Thyselfish

"Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side."

That is not reason, it's randomness. Although the chicken appears to have a "reason" for his actions, his motivations, as far as we can tell, are random. A random desire to get to the other side is not reasonable. Thereby, the chicken can be shown not to be a creature of reason.

Human beings, contrarily, are creatures of reason. We do not act randomly; rather, we act as a result of motivation. And, unlike the chicken's random motivation, our motivations, being reasonable, follow a set of predictable rules, traced back to a fundamental principle: selfishness. Human beings are, by default, selfish. And it's a good thing, too.
If people weren't selfish, we would all be dead by now. No one would bother eating, breathing, or dodging falling rocks if not for self-preservation. But our inherent selfishness extends beyond mere preservation. Every action we take stems from a selfish desire. This does not make us bad; it makes us reasonable.

Take eating breakfast for example. When you eat breakfast, what are some of your motivations? Perhaps you wish to no longer feel hungry. Maybe you want to store some energy to feel good later in the day. Or, you may simply be used to breakfast and eat only to find comfort in the familiar habit. No matter how you look at it, you eat breakfast (or don't) to fulfill a basic, selfish desire, be it hunger, energy, or comfort.

Breakfast is, of course, merely a microcosm for all of human existence. Take good deeds, for example. Suppose you go to a food kitchen and feed the hungry. Why? Because someone you know is expecting you to go, and you want to avoid feeling uncharitable? Because you know some of the starving people and you need to feel as though you are important and can make a difference in their lives? Because it simply makes you feel good about yourself and allows you to walk away peacefully, having more money and food than these people but feeling as though your debt to them has been repaid? Whatever the reason, you want to feel a certain way. You want to feel good, or noble, or useful. Those are not bad desires, it is great to want to feel good and noble and useful. But recognize that these desires are as selfish as any other.

The importance in acknowledging even the best desires as "selfish" is to better understand the diversity of human life. Some people, for example, will dedicate their existence to traveling Africa to help cure diseases, all for no pay. An observer may, at first glance, consider this type of human morally superior to he who works in business, making lots of money. Consider, however, the motivations and impacts of the two individuals.

Individual A, the volunteer, is motivated by a desire to feel good each day, to feel like he is making a difference in the world. Person B does not get this feeling from his work, and must suffer each day knowing that there are those in need whom he is not helping. True, person B wants money, but for what? To buy food for his family? To make his children happy with toys and trips? Sure, these are selfish reasons for doing his work, but know that they are no more selfish than person A, who works for his own immediate gratification, who does nothing to help build the economy of his country, does nothing to invest in the next generation of children to continue his good work, does nothing to provide the good and services the businessman is willing to provide to millions of people he will never meet and who will never thank him.

What does this mean? Simply that all human beings are selfish, but that is alright. By being selfish, we make the world go 'round. Selfishness ensures that the USA and the USSR do not nuke one another during the cold war, for selfish fear of retaliation, loss of life, and looking bad. Selfishness means that the economies of the world do not collapse as people burn their money, for people are far too selfish to do so. Selfishness predicts human action, it provides motivation and structure, it creates reason. If people broke free and acted randomly, without reason, we could not function. Selfishness is a force, like gravity. It is a standard that allows systems to rely on it. If we can trust in basic human selfish desire, we can create societies and laws that function. We can create punishments that deter crime, reward that encourage ideal behavior, and lives that people will enjoy leading once we understand that people are, basically and wonderfully, selfish.

The difference between human beings and chickens is that we would not cross the road unless we had a good, selfish reason to. The chicken gets run over by a car. The human built the car for good, wholesome, selfish reasons. Homo sum humani a me nihil alienum puto.