Even though I am a member of the Christian tribe some members of the tribe might consider me somewhat of a heretic. I am a believer in evolution. Maybe we didn’t evolve from an ape or an amoeba, but I belief the human species has evolved and adapted through the years. I have observed much of this process even during my time on the planet.

We are born with a scarlet letter stamped on our body called a genetic code. In many ways our life is predestined and we are stratified into our physical and emotional makeup. We may be labeled as a diabetic or with some other potential medical malady, such as cancer, by our genetic code. This genetic labeling even determines our social stratification in human society.

There are exceptions to the rule and many struggle to climb out of their predetermined level of stratification. This struggle produces all sorts of emotional conflicts. If an individual is born a redneck they are likely to marry and remain a redneck. The Beverly Hillbillies were a good example. They were born hillbillies and remained so even in a sophisticated environment. Most of us follow a particular religious belief or denomination because it was that of our parents. Once born a Baptist, Catholic, Muslim, Jew or whatever, we stick with that tribe. Whether conscious or subconscious, folks tend to marry others with the same traits as their parents. All of this tends to propagate a particular strata within society as well as our physical traits.

The genetic code is influence by external stimuli. The environment, drugs, and experience may all influence the genetic stamp but usually the genetic stamp trumps everything else. Our personalities seem to be set for life. In other words, once a jerk always a jerk. Some tribes put little stock in marriage. A female may bear several children with different mates. The male is merely a stud, like the deer in my yard, running around impregnating any female who holds still. This is still the practice of a primitive and animal society and, hopefully, evolution will eventually cause this tribe to move to a more advanced level. Politicians, bankers, CEOs are in the tribe of thieves and seem to represent evolution in reverse. They are moving to the lowest level and, hopefully, will become extinct.

I come from a long line of porch sitters and sure hope my bunch doesn’t experience any adaptations or evolutionary changes in the next few years. I’m very content not to change.