[Written in 2003 and just found recently]
E: Tell me again Uncle Charly. I am just not getting it.
No, of course you’re not, and there-in lies the problem on so many levels. You’re not getting it. I’m not sure if you will ever understand it. And that’s scary.
But that’s it. I don’t see what the big deal is. People will still keep doing what they’re doing now.
You’d think… but it’s not that easy.
That’s what I still don’t understand.
Exactly.
I understand you’re patronizing me, that much I know.
I suppose I was. That was uncalled for. I’ll try once more to relate it. You know about the birds and the bees?
I thought you were going to stop patronizing me.
You’re right. You would see it that way, but in fact, I was asking a legitimate question. Every animal on earth has a place in “life” that seems to work out pretty well. There are different breeds within any species that seem to instinctively be better at some tasks than others, through breeding or natural selection over time.
Like Some dogs can herd sheep with little training?
Yes, and some obviously can’t.
Ok Uncle Charlie. I’m with you so far.
Lots of species have different breeds, like the ants or bees with the queen bees and drones and workers. The animal kingdom has tens of thousands of variations.
Yes…
Well, so do humans. We just never admitted it before.
That’s where I lose you Uncle Charlie. We’re all humans. We’ve been educated our whole lives that we are all the same and should be treated equally.
We should be treated as equals, but we’re defiantly not equal.
But aren’t we always told we can be anything we want to be?
Yes.
Are you saying that’s a lie?
Well, I’m not saying it. I wouldn’t call it a lie. It’s not a scientific impossibility, but humans certainly have breeds, and different breeds are better at some things than others.
Oh… like the Jocks and the Nerds.
That’s the best analogy you could have come up with. Like the Jocks and the Nerds. You know when you meet somebody who’s not going to be the President. Some people are just better at learning. Personalities and skills both contribute, but I’m telling you it’s something you’re born with.
So I was born a nerd, and there isn’t anything I can do about it?
Well Eric… I wouldn’t say you’re a nerd. That’s where I start to lose you. Your brain isn’t quite developed enough to comprehend what’s coming. The change.
Well I never understood this much before. These analogies to animals helped. It seems to make sense that humans are just a different animal. Some are better at some things than others.
Very few people want to admit that. It’s scary.
Why do you keep saying it’s scary. All you’ve told me is the idea that humans have breeds and we’re not all created equal afterall.
Right, but the point is, our survival is based on this balance of different brains. Society as we know it is a fine balance of the percentages of different breeds to keep everybody happy. Worker drones, and the Queen Bees.
Yeah Yeah… so what is the change.
Well, we accidentally-
Oh Oh… Nothing good ever comes after those opening words.
Well, lots of things have been accidents. Post it notes, Velcro –
Don’t change the topic. What is the change?
We wiped out Type A and B brains.
Wiped out?
Well, not now… but in the future. We didn’t knowit at the time, but apparently olives change male semen just enough to not produce Type A brains… With B brains it was Jolt Cola.
(Eric makes airplane sound and waves his hand over his head to signify; Over my head)
No babies with A brains and B brains are being born. At all. Not one in the last 15 years.
Everybody under the age of 15 is a type C brain. More than a whole generation’s worth.
And that’s bad?
That’s bad. Very bad.
Is it really bad, or are you just scared we’re smarter than you think?
You can be very smart. It’s not a smart issue. It’s just different. You said it. Over your head. But you don’t need to understand why. Just understand that the whole world is going to change.
But Uncle Charlie. It would have changed anyway. It always does. Every parent has the same fear. The world will be different for thier kids than it was for them. That’s what evolution is. We adapt. The only difference is, now somebody noticed it in a lab. It never mattered to the C brains, and we’re happy. In many ways, the happiest. Change may be scary, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Evolution is just God’s beta testing. Whatever that is. Every generation; a new version.
Wow. I would have never thought of it that way.
Exactly Uncle Charlie. Exactly.