Sameness Insistence is A Major Cause of Conflict in the World

If we all become the same, will we finally have peace in the world?

I think not.

In fact, I think that such an attitude, which I’ll call sameness insistence, is one of the causes of wrongdoing and suffering in the world.

First, think of the times when people demand that all be the same. Who would be the basis of sameness? Of course, themselves. Even if other persons may actually have better ideas, values, practices, or propositions, they will insist that everyone follow them. So if some one tells me, being different means you are selfish, I beg to differ. As long as one makes oneself the basis for others to follow, sameness insistence is selfish. What’s worse, if other persons refuse to be like the sameness insister, the latter will want those differers punished, at times to the point of having them killed. If you ask the sameness insisters to follow someone else’s idea, they’ll be hopping mad (“Why should I follow someone else? I am the one who’s right! I am offended”). They are the ones who will be dictators even if they claim to be against dictators.

Marxism is one of those belief systems that turn people into these “sameness karens.” Sameness insistence though first occurs in old folk beliefs, tribal societies and other such cultures, primitiveness that seems to fascinate Marxists and similar. All over the world, some quarters of society will assume that achieving sameness is the right state of things, the state of paradise. Same beliefs, same habits, same manners, same approach to all situations, eat the same food, have the same kind of house, wear the same kind of clothes, etc.

Actually, that would be a nightmare world.

Bigotry and Sameness Insistence

People were riled up about racism in the US after the death of George Floyd. But they should realize that sameness insistence is the very premise of racism. Why? Apparently people see one’s own race as the norm. Anyone not of the race is the enemy or a threat to survival. Discrimination is based on the notion that you should treat someone well only if they are equal with or the same as you and different people are to be mistreated.

This racism problem is not limited to Western countries; it is present in all people and societies, whether Africa, Southeast Asia, South America, Native America, and more. Communists, Nazis, Khmer Rouge, Stalinists/Soviets, old tribes who set out to destroy enemy tribes. Discrimination and bigotry are rooted in culture, so to address these, cultural change is necessary.

If people were serious about ending any form of discrimination, they would end sameness insistence and accept differences and distinctions as the norm. Hasn’t it been the said by the true peacemakers that you should not oppress those who are different? Thus, peacemakers should not insist on sameness.

The answer against discrimination and conflict is not the homogenization of all people, but accepting people and their differences. Instead of requiring sameness before acceptance, practice acceptance without demanding conformity. If you find some differences offensive, best practice reason and patience because you might actually be offended over a non-issue.

Differences are Natural and Keep Us Alive

As is my observation on many other things, sameness insistence is one of the ways people try to obtain security and is a reaction to the difficulties of physical life. Difference is seen as an existential threat. But that seems to be a cognitive dissonance when you look more closely at the reality.

Nature makes us all different. While we all have the same fundamental needs, such as food, water, air, and mental stimulation, we have many differences in height, weight, facial features, tastes, talents, abilities, allergies, and genetic disorders. When trying to cancel out these differences and insisting on sameness, people oppose nature and reality.

For example, a person with a food allergy wants to ban other people from eating the food as well to force solidarity or parity. But that is also selfishness (or the “naghahanap ng karamay”/misery loves company mentality). A militant vegan/vegetarian who wants to ban other people from eating meat is another example. They may claim that they are helping other people by doing so, but they are actually doing it for themselves. It goes for the other side too, people who want to force others with food allergies to eat the allergenic food or force vegans to eat meat.

Now some may remark, these differences are so inconvenient and cruel. But that’s the reality. I would turn it around and say that differences are in fact our friend in in dealing with the difficulties of reality and helping with our survival. Sameness insistence may even harm our chances of survival.

If people demand something that is in limited supply, they are likely to fight over it because it will be depleted quickly. Imagine if all people are only pork-eaters and didn’t eat chicken or beef. Pork would probably be long depleted or people would be waging wars over it. Since they all ate the same, if that same resource gets depleted and they eat nothing else, then they all starve. Different tastes help us survive.

If we all had the same vulnerabilities and sicknesses, such as allergies, then we all go down together when the same pathogen or allergen strikes us all. If your doctor is like this, they get sick and die with you. Or, think of a drowning person caught in a deadly undercurrent. The one who could save a drowning person should not also be caught in the undercurrent, which puts them in a different position. If they are on the shore or on a nearby boat, they can throw a life preserver or a rope, or just go near and pull the person up. Jumping into the water to drown together with the person, the “nakikiramay” attitude (it may seem kind but it is also misguided), only increases the number of casualties.

When people pull together and work together in times of need, it is not a way of making them all the same. Rather, it is the useful application of their differences; different talents, skills and knowledge, in different roles and tasks. Not everyone can be a farmer, carpenter, leader, doctor, or whatever you name. I’ll bet no one can successfully multitask in all those roles, as people are limited.

Lack of differences also stifles innovation and forward thinking that builds societies. Innovations come from people who came up with a different thought from their contemporaries, leading to inventions like nitrogen fertilizer, refrigeration, cargo containers, medical advances, and the Internet. This runs counter to the tendency of Filipinos to simply imitate their neighbor when going into business or such. That happened with the marble makers of Romblon, shawarma, mik tea, barbecues, fries and many others. Many iterations of the same business exist side-by-side in the same area, causing saturation and making them more likely to die out. Then the owners look only for the next business fad instead of thinking up something unique that they can sustain. This demonstrates Filipinos’ lack of creativity and fear of doing things differently.

Sameness and Equality: Not the Same

Sameness is often seen as synonymous with equality, so say Marxists especially. I think not. In an analogy that I used in my personal blog, suppose there are two people, one is born big, the other small. Let’s say the big person eats two pounds of food a day. The small person eats one pound a day. Each has different needs to be equally satisfied. That is all right.

But it’s not all right for sameness fanatics like Marxists. They will want both to eat the same amount: one pound or two pounds both. But would this be right? Either the big guy eats too little, or the small guy eats too much. They wouldn’t be properly satisfied.

The “Weird Solution” some will propose is to make the bigger person eat less and the smaller person eat more. They assume it will lead to the heights or builds of the said people adjusting until they become the same. This is ridiculous of course, because it ignores the actual rules of biology. I’d also call it improper use of resources.

Equality here does not depend on people eating the same amount but on the end result, which is being appropriately filled after eating. People have different levels of being filled. Making everyone eat the same amount will never solve world hunger. All efforts at achieving equality through sameness will fail because that is not how reality works. Catering to each and every person’s differences is still the better solution towards the ideal world.

Now there’s the issue of haves and have-nots. I say not all have-nots are bad; not everybody needs to own the same things. For example, I’m a scale modeler and have scale models, or an artist with art supplies. Does that mean others should have scale models and art supplies too? No. Why would they need it if they are not artists or modelers? Then others will say, give out your scale models and art supplies, redistribute your wealth! Or, get rid of your models and art supplies, as we have determined that you should not have them so you can be equal to others! Nah. That’s what you call tyranny.

Disparity is not automatically injustice. What we find wrong are the effects noticed among the disparities: hunger, disease, abuse, bullying, etc. But disparity is not the only cause of these things and disparity does not always lead to them. Claims of disparity can also be subjective at times. I believe that people have to look more closely at each case and understand the nuances.

The pic for this article is a funny meme showing poor office ergonomics. I’m using it as a demonstration of imposing sameness on people, such as expecting them to fit equally in the same space. You can’t, and a bigger guy will need bigger space. Best cater to it. Of course, people will be all up in arms saying, you’re so unfair, you oppressor, you evil person! That will never change the reality of different needs.

Sameness insistence leads to Totalitarianism

Despite Marxism’s claim that each will get what they need (from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs), it will fail to deliver because it is a sameness insistence ideology. To accomplish what it seeks, it deprives people of individuality and the right to control one’s own life. It is nothing but totalitarianism (as any other sameness insistence culture other than Marxism will lead to).

I know this question will be raised: Shouldn’t we all have the same values? If we achieve the state wherein all believe that differences should be accepted by all without anyone getting angry, doesn’t that make us the same? Why yes, for this particular value, this is the right kind of sameness! While nuance remains key in understanding this, this is still the eventual state that I hope society reaches.

Of course, I understand that forcing others to accept my values and beliefs is wrong. Writing this article isn’t forcing but sharing ideas for other to see if they find it worth applying. The ones more guilty of forcing others to accept their values are the woke and the Leftists (or even karens, super-conservatives, and tribal people) who seem to oppose everything that does not agree with them.

The Gaslighting of “Different” as “Evil”

Let’s say people have differences that are so abhorrent to you. For example, “Yellows” think of supporters of Bongbong Marcos or Rodrigo Duterte as evil, and some Americans see Donald Trump as evil incarnate. However, instead of saying “don’t vote for these people,”, they said, “vote for my candidate or you are evil!” – sameness insistence. Or, on the Ukraine War, some people want you to fervently voice support for Ukraine and not be neutral, or contribute to funds for Ukraine. You have to pick a side, because if you are neutral, or you don’t donate to Ukraine and such, you are on the side of the oppressor (as Marxism puts it, on the wrong side of history)! This is gaslighting in order to find a reason to go on a witch-hunt against people who disagree.

Another erroneous mindset I see in some sameness insisters is, if we don’t have the same values, the world will collapse! Not true, though. We are already in a world where people have different values and it’s not collapsing. Atrocious and heinous things may be happening, but they’ve been happening for years without the world collapsing. If anything can make the world collapse, it would be when sameness insisters have their way.

The wokes claim to be for diversity (DEI – Diversity, Equity and Inclusion). But they are actually sameness insisters. They are not actually pushing for diversity, but want everybody to be the same as them. DEI is just a cover for a power move to get people fired and take an institution so that those who take over can impose their agenda on others. Connections to communism aren’t farfetched, especially since the Chinese government has connections to companies with DEI/ESG programs. Supporters and skeptics of this claim will call it a conspiracy theory, red-tagging or such. However, already too many voices are raising the alarm and it is not that easily dismissed.

Other Pitfalls of Sameness Insistence

Marketers and sellers take advantage of sameness insistence to gaslight people to buy things and of people’s fear of being different. In selling a product, they try to make you afraid of not having the same product as others, with the message that you’ll get ostracized or ridiculed for being “uncool.” And then you also come to ostracize others who don’t have it. You become Stockholm-Syndromed into commercial bigotry. If you don’t feel the need to be the same as others, you won’t be taken by this tactic (and, those who apply this tactic should be taken to task).

Sameness insistence can also become a pitfall in leadership. Some “leaders” believe that it’s best to make their subordinates the same as them, especially if they are accomplished people whose success has gotten to their heads (or even those who think they’re accomplished but are delusioned). Not only may they require subordinates to adopt their exact principles and practices, but they may able to make these subordinates suffer the same abuse as they did. They may claim making others go through the same bad experiences as them will make those others understand them. Nope, that’s spreading one’s own misfortune to other people. Good leaders seek to prevent what they suffered from happening to their subordinates. They also identify the differences in a team and use them for the benefit of everyone.

Filipino culture of course, being very tribalist, has rabid sameness insistence. Get Real Philippines has been criticizing this part of Filipino culture from the start. Stubborn insularism and tribalist attitudes have been stifling innovation and improvement and have been keeping the country backward in comparison with much of the developed world.

I also believe multiculturalism efforts (such as lax immigration policies) are doomed to fail because they fail to take into account sameness insistence. A multicultural society does not work because most of the people thrust into it carry their tribal backwardness with them. They will still look only for people who are the same as them and will be hostile to those who are different. Also, multiculturalism may also be applied with the assumption that people will eventually become the same; this is a dangerous assumption. It’s better not to force multiculturalism in the end.

In my articles about music and art, I emphasized that people have different tastes because that is what makes things more enjoyable. If all people have the same taste, it would mean that they’ve lost their free will and their “taste” is not real. It may have happened that someone imposed their taste on everyone. Such tastes would not be sincere and are therefore false. Thus, having different tastes means we are still human and free.

Overcoming the Sameness Insistence Bug

Trying to make others the same as you will not help them understand you. We can never literally get into another person’s head and feel exactly the same things that they felt in order to understand them. The act of understanding by itself has the concept of being outside of someone else; that’s why you’re trying to understand them in the first place. If you can approximate the idea about another person’s experience, you can already understand or have empathy for them. The inability to perfectly understand others is not wrong. It is a mistake by humanity to assume that failure to perfectly understand another is evil. The resulting response if they assume this is to *force* understanding.

I also see sameness insistence as related to any belief, religious or otherwise, that promotes monism or the merging of everything into one. Usually, these beliefs will posit that individuality and people’s differences are abnormalities. To become “normal,” we work towards deindividuation, break down individual identities, and get absorbed into a whole, a hive-mind (maybe like the Eternals merging into the Uni-Mind in Marvel Comics). Everyone will become the same, everything will be become one form, everyone will think the same thoughts and be in unison in all actions and other things like that. That’s just like John Carpenter’s “The Thing,” a nightmare.

Why do people insist on sameness despite evidence that it could be harmful? Well, one seeming reason is that they don’t know any better. The assumption of sameness for all is a perception brought about by shortsightedness and ignorance. People tend to act on what little they know and they lack knowledge on the differences that are out there. When they encounter those differences, they react violently. Or, maybe people just don’t care, similar to cars drivers who don’t care if their actions endanger others on the road. They don’t care even if they know that their actions to enforce their ideals on others causes harm.

Also, I also think sameness insistence is caused by the illusions in the mind brought about by deindividuation or groupthink. When you’re accepted in a group and you feel that you’re all the same with them, there’s a bit of a warm fuzzy feeling from the feel-good brain chemicals. While this is not bad at first, the problem is when a person decides to embrace deindividuation at all costs. It will lead to the person becoming more susceptible to proposals to commit wrongdoing without any remorse.

Many dollops of life wisdom support accepting differences over sameness insistence. I recall that, as a kid, I would expect other people to be the same as me. But as I grow up, I learn that I should accept people’s differences and treat them with respect. Sameness insistence partly stems from immaturity. Also, the advice “don’t compare yourself to others” can mean “you don’t need to be the same as others.”

Difference is Being, Existing

Differences also serve an ontological purpose. If everyone were completely the same, with no distinctions or differences whatsoever, they’re all clones, drones, or zombies. In a way, it’s like they don’t exist. Differences are among the signs of being, proof of existence. I would argue that sameness insistence (especially in the way Marxists, woke, and similar want) is a vicious assault on being.

People should not see differences and inequalities between people as “lamang” or taking advantage of others (Filipinos especially are obsessed with being “lamang”). Different treatment should not be seen as special treatment. As differences exist naturally, it is no one’s fault that people are different and neither is being different a fault.

People will also need to overcome the selfishness of wanting everything to be the same like them. I know that I have the same wish, as I am fond of science fictional stuff, retrofuturism, and out of this world stuff, and I do wish I had friends with the same exact tastes. However, I understand that there are no such persons and I have to adjust to that and this nuanced world. I will keep my own tastes and resist other peoples’ efforts to alter my tastes to their desire, but I won’t try to alter theirs as well. We will have to live with our differences.

Other people would say, catering to different needs instead of making all people being the same in order to simplify the meeting of needs is a stupid, unrealistic, and logistically nightmarish ideal that’s even offensive! But take note: this is the ideal, it represents something to work towards while recognizing that we cannot perfectly achieve it. I would also argue that meeting many different wants and needs was better fulfilled by the free market (which Communists gave the strawman term Capitalism), rather than central control that seeks to make everyone the same and put them under dictatorial control.

Thanks for bearing with this rant. While I will admit that this may not be the ultimate answer to world peace, I will point out that nothing will be since humans will always be imperfect. However, to make a bit of “impact” on the world, I believe that the more people accept the reality and necessity of differences, the easier it will be to avoid conflict. We can at least get closer to peace with the reduction or elimination of sameness insistence.