We Are Not Programmed for Freedom In this brief essay I will argue that humans are not free because we are genetically programmed to be creative worker slaves. Governed from birth to conduct our lives as servants, we can easily be trapped into roles which require obedience. I believe recognition of this genetic predisposition is critical if the goal is to achieve freedom for humanity. By recognizing what we are, I believe over a course of generations it will be possible to effect change in and across cultures. The definition of freedom may never be fully understood or agreed upon, but respecting the right to live as one chooses is a tangible goal. Before I argue my thesis, I will briefly indicate the simple definitions of freedom that I will be using. One can think of these definitions as the ‘gravel’ under the ‘concrete’ of my argument. Briefly, a person is free if he or she has freedom of expression, can think what he or she wants, and the person cannot be a slave. I will not extend the definition of freedom to a person who can ‘act as he or she wants’, as I can find no reasonable qualifier for this statement making it impossible to apply to my arguments. From our birth up until our early years we are completely dependent on caregivers for survival. This is not a short period of time like most other creatures, this goes on for many years. Young humans are bonded to whomever will keep them fed, clothed, warm, clean, safe, accepted and housed. I believe that without love and acceptance a human is doomed to be miserable, but I also believe that a genetic component results in our wanting to be controlled. This dependent start is necessary for our species, but the fact that it persists leads to a life of obedience. The question of why it persists is often thought to be environmental and cultural, but I argue that our strong need for unquestioning order and stability is based on our genetic makeup. These genetic factors encourage humans to obey and allow for control of the masses. These genetic elements are easily exploited by people in positions of power. Let us consider the human mind as an organ distinctly and specifically designed for three services: to obey, to work and to be inventive. These three attributes may seem mutually exclusive, but I will argue that they coexist perfectly well. We need to solve problems in our everyday life that require creativity, yet we easily fall into line when an authority orders us to do something, regardless of the coherence of the order. We see this in zero tolerance laws, we see this in government control, we see this in wars against inexistent enemies, we see this in business. I believe the workplace is a simple example in which to examine my thesis in this short essay. In the modern workplace the worker is expected to labour to set rhythms, solve problems and tow the company line. With approximately thirty years of work experience, twenty of these in multi-lingual and multi-national workplaces, I have seen no exceptions. Every single company I have worked for or collaborated with, either as a client or as an employee, expects obedience, problem solving and constant output. In my experience, the company receives all three from the average worker without question. This might seem perfectly logical for business, but what I have seen and experienced is anything but logical. I argue that businesses are inherently irrational, unless viewed through the lens of oppressing humans. Consider the link between modern day money practice, business and human nature. The mechanisms of money control can trace its roots back thousands of years when the loaning of capital was used to gain power over an individual and govern society. This has not changed; he who loans or gives work is the man who is in control. Since humans are easily controlled, this continues in the workplace which serves as a diluted military. Business does not leverage the human condition for the survival of the business itself, nor to guarantee a living wage for all. It may attempt to create a work life balance because the current Western dominated business model expects it, but the fundamental goal of business is to create profit. Therefore, business can be seen as logical if the owner or shareholders wish to maintain a state of human repression by taking advantage of what we are: creative slave workers. I cannot view business as logical as I view humanity through our potential, not what our genetics determine us to be. My hope is that enough of humanity will recognize what humans are and make every effort to create a freer life for all. Unfortunately, human genetics makes business control possible and personal freedom difficult to achieve. To better understand my thesis of business and the human condition, one only needs to work in a small sized company for full comprehension. There is no meritocracy that will be rewarded to a human who will not blindly obey. If a business must choose between a thinking creative or a thinking slave, the business will choose the latter. The business will choose the bondsman even if the output is lower for the simple reason of governability. One might expect that such irrational thinking would lead to the inevitable failure of the business itself, but I will argue the exact opposite. In my experience all businesses repudiate the erudite free human. Therefore, all businesses sink to the lowest common denominator and a dysfunctional society governed by business can stay afloat. Simply put, this appalling system works because virtually everyone adopts it. Let us look at the effects of being a creative worker slave via the challenge of going against the grain in a workplace. It does not matter if you have the agreement of your entire workshop or office, when you challenge the board of directors you stand alone. If you do not have the mental fortitude to accomplish this task, I would argue it is not advisable to mount a challenge. If you do not even have the strength to stand behind someone willing to risk his proverbial skin, then you have even less reason to attempt change. Consider one of the definitions of freedom in the beginning of this essay, the freedom of expression. I ask those who disagree with my thesis to imagine confronting a high-ranking manager about a question that is inherently wrong to the workers but desired by the board of directors. If the reader is put in that situation, I think it would become clear to him or her that humans have freedom of expression insofar as it does not cause any disruption. To me that is not freedom at all. The reason why humans fall into the pattern of creative obedient work is that we are genetically programmed to do so. I will state boldly with no exceptions; every single last one of us on planet earth is programmed to serve. Those who live their lives free of these constraints can do so because they have strong-armed their own genetics and have concentrated on being creatives. These free humans have understood that happiness is not the end goal for living, only by being creative can a human attain freedom. Why is it that humanity cannot change society to be free? There are many reasons but since I am analysing the genetic human condition, I will consider only this aspect. Humans are made up of three parts: the creative, the worker and the slave. Therefore, two thirds of a human’s essence is obsequious and the remaining third has the monumental challenge to overcome the less desirable aspects of his or her being. I argue that there is a genetic reason why one must put in a much greater effort to break out of a negative mentality and embrace a positive one than vice versa. I do not support the thesis that our condition it is due exclusively to culture and upbringing. It is easier to stay trapped than it is to become free because we are programmed to obey. Thus, the task for gaining personal freedom is greater because of the effort to overcome our genes. But it is not a match to win, freedom requires constant mental sustain. These efforts are hampered by the fact that a person who wishes to find personal freedom will not find him or herself surrounded by others seeking the same objective. There is often no ill will nor indifference from other people, they are simply programmed not to rock the boat. The concept of freedom is immensely complex, but since it is strongly felt by many, I believe the concept should be analysed in detail in future essays. I maintain that achieving freedom for humanity is hampered by the fact that the majority are not aware that we are programmed for servitude. This secret knowledge is used against humanity to keep the knowing few governing the unknowing many. This implies that we humans have not lost our way. Instead, we are exactly on the path that was genetically encoded in us. This does not mean that we cannot reach for the stars, but it does mean we need to understand where we are starting from if we wish to improve our lot. Humans are not free, so we have much work ahead of us.