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Comment by bulatb | Hacker News Reader

People didn't get their worldview from the myth. They like the myth because it fits their worldview.

>In their natural habitat, wolf packs operated nothing like the prison-yard dynamics he'd observed in the zoo.

Human's aren't in their natural habit most of the time either. "Prison-yard dynamics" is how the public education system functions. This is where our children are socialized.

High school is more complex as there is a life outside it where other dynamics can be observed. At least that's what I noticed and it made me realize that the popularity contest in high school was a farce.

> it made me realize that the popularity contest in high school was a farce.

Observing outside life has led me to conclude that the high school popularity contest, is, in fact, the most authentic, freest form of human social behavior.

I agree 100%. I could only see it in the last year or two: Instagram allows people to maintain high school popularity in adult life. Before Insta, those people faded into oblivion because there was no global platform to amplify their good looks or likeable personality. (There were still popular, but in much smaller social circles.) After Insta, "high school popular" people can maintain it indefinitely.

Lmao “I’m mad some people look nicer than me and know how to be kind to people. They suck and are only popular because of Instagram.”

My guy, comb your hair, take a shower, put on deodorant and a clean shirt. You’re fine.

I don't disagree of course. And this is less a critique of the individual men vs our current social structure. A good deal of my work is in helping people free themselves, however, this wouldn't be necessary had it not been a life long project of incarceration.

I suspect this is part of the reason unschooling is become more popular.

15% of the 5% homeschooled is not very popular.

Up from 0% before the process was developed.

are we equating homeschooling to unschooled now? while there are definitely people claiming homeschool while just as a cover for not being in school, that doesn't mean that all homeschool is not educating the kids.

GP commented on slope, not value, not to mention proportion.

Unschooling has been around for some 50 years. 0.02%/year is one hell of a slope. It's a fad that will pass just as many other fads pass.

Thanks for some data, do you have a source for that?

Curious prediction.

Googled in 5 minutes.

I appreciated a point I saw a few months ago about how the wolf-derived alpha/beta/etc stuff is a safe way for cis men to experiment with gender identity without risking being labeled queer by other men and having to confront harassment.

Lmfao that’s a great observation. Probably at least a big part of it.

I've pondered alpha male theory for a 5 years before having a solid conclusion before or against it. I rejected it. But yea, I really was that socially clueless, it took me 5 years as a late teen of observing and thinking about it to understand that life is more complicated than that and that the idea of alpha males is ridiculous, especially since I saw strong evidence on the contrary (i.e. "beta behaviors" and still having an amazing dating life, etc.).

See also depressed rats in stressful conditions becoming drug addicts.

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