The hypocrisy of some is that we like to think of ourselves as

The poet and cartoon philosopher Michael Leunig once declared: “The hypocrisy of some is that we like to think of ourselves as sophisticated and evolved, but we're still also driven by primal urges like greed and power.” In this saying, he unmasks the fragile mask of civilization. Though men clothe themselves in culture, philosophy, and technology, beneath the surface burn the ancient fires of greed and power, as fierce and unyielding as in the days when tribes fought with stone and fire.

The origin of this truth lies in Leunig’s vision of modern life, where cities gleam with steel and glass, yet wars rage, markets devour, and hearts still hunger for dominance. He calls this a hypocrisy, for humanity boasts of progress, but the old instincts rule still. The veneer of sophistication often hides the same primal impulses that guided our ancestors, showing that true evolution is not of machines, but of the spirit.

History reveals this pattern in the fall of the Roman Empire. Rome prided itself on law, learning, and grandeur, yet its rulers were consumed with greed and the lust for power. Senators betrayed the republic for coin, emperors shed rivers of blood to secure thrones, and the empire, clothed in sophistication, rotted from within. Its fall was not caused by barbarians alone, but by the primal urges that undid the mighty from the inside.

The ancients themselves warned against this duality. Plato spoke of the soul’s three parts, where reason must govern spirit and appetite, lest chaos reign. The Hebrews denounced kings who, though anointed, fell prey to greed and forgot justice. Again and again, the lesson was taught: man may wear the crown of reason, but if he does not master his urges, he becomes slave to them, no matter how “evolved” he claims to be.

Therefore, O seekers, strip away illusion and look within. Do not boast of sophistication if you have not conquered envy, ambition, and hunger for domination. For the true mark of being “evolved” is not the progress of tools, but the discipline of the heart. To master greed and power is the task of every generation, and those who fail will see their empires, their families, and their very souls undone. This is Leunig’s warning: that until the spirit rises above the primal, mankind walks in hypocrisy, clothed in silk yet bound by chains.