Chapter Two - Tribal Right and Wrong

CHAPTER TWO

Tribal Right and Wrong

LET’S SAY YOU’RE living 10,000 years ago. No phone. No fridge. No podcast. Just you, your people, the wild, and a sharp stick.

Here’s how morality works:
If you protect your tribe, you’re good.
If you feed your tribe, you’re honored.
If you betray your tribe, you’re dead.

That’s it. That’s the whole system.

Morality didn’t mean fairness. It meant loyalty. It meant knowing who’s us and who’s them, and making damn sure you stayed on the right side of that line. Right and wrong weren’t some big philosophical debate; they were life-or-death rules carved into your culture.

You didn’t need a judge. You had shame.
You didn’t need a jury. You had gossip.
You didn’t need a constitution. You had stories.

Tribes were tight, and the code was enforced in sideways glances, public rituals, and that one elder who could humiliate you in front of the fire circle. If you stepped out of line, the consequences came fast and personal.

But that line between “right” and “wrong” was completely different from one tribe to the next.

In one group, it’s honorable to kill your enemy in single combat. In another, it’s honorable to sneak into their camp and slit their throat while they sleep. In one tribe, marriage is sacred. In another, it’s optional. In one, women can lead. In another, they can’t even speak.

There was no grand, objective standard. There was just our way and their way. And their way was always wrong.

That’s the root of moral relativism, the idea that different cultures define morality differently. But tribalism doesn’t stop there, because once you’ve decided your way is right, it’s a short walk to deciding you’re better. And once you’re better, well… then maybe those other people don’t count as much. Maybe their lives aren’t worth the same. Maybe violence against them isn’t really wrong.

Sound familiar?

This isn’t ancient history. This is your brain. Right now. Today.
It’s why people get more upset when someone cheats their team.
It’s why political rage feels righteous and not just angry.
It’s why you instinctively flinch when “one of us” gets hurt and feel less when it’s “one of them.”

You were built to think in tribes, which means your sense of morality comes with built-in blind spots.

And those blind spots? They’ve started wars. They’ve justified slavery. They’ve excused genocide. All in the name of “what’s right.”

So the next time you feel 100% sure you’re on the good side… maybe ask which tribe told you that.