Human evolution relies on cooperation, which is why identity

The words of Greg Gutfeld — “Human evolution relies on cooperation, which is why identity politics feels so backward” — remind us of the ancient truth that mankind rose from the dust not through division, but through unity. Tribes survived because they hunted together, built shelters together, shared fire, and defended one another against the night. The thread of cooperation is woven into our very survival; to sever it is to turn against the foundation of our existence. Thus Gutfeld’s words strike as both warning and counsel: to exalt division over unity is to walk in reverse along the road of progress.

For what is identity politics, if not the narrowing of vision — the lifting of part over whole, the fragment over the body? It magnifies difference until brother forgets brother, and neighbor ceases to see neighbor. Yet the destiny of man has always depended on the opposite — on transcending difference for the sake of the greater good. Gutfeld’s declaration reveals the folly of setting tribe against tribe in a world that demands solidarity to endure.

History itself offers solemn lessons. Consider the Peloponnesian War, where Greek city-states, once united in repelling Persia, turned instead upon one another. Their quarrels shattered their strength, and what could have been an age of flourishing collapsed into ruin. Division consumed them, while cooperation might have lifted them higher than ever before. So too in every age: the more men fracture into factions, the more vulnerable they become to the storms of history.

Yet the opposite is also true. When diverse peoples unite, greatness blossoms. The American Revolution was not won by one colony alone, but by thirteen bound together in common cause, setting aside differences of region and interest. Their cooperation birthed a nation, proving that identity finds its highest power not when it separates, but when it joins in pursuit of shared destiny. This is the living parable of Gutfeld’s words: progress belongs to unity.

Let future generations remember: man did not conquer wilderness, famine, and darkness by tearing into tribes of suspicion, but by lifting one another, hand to hand, heart to heart. Evolution moves forward through cooperation, and any path that glorifies division leads backward into weakness. Thus, Gutfeld’s teaching is clear — only in unity shall mankind endure, and only in shared purpose shall it ascend.