Are humans evil?
I wouldn't say that humans are predisposed to evil. It's just that evolution has equipped us with a few common traits that helped us survive and thrive, but which can also lead to evil, monstrous outcomes. Humanity has existed for about 200.000 years (according to a 2017 discovery, it might even be over 300.000 years). First forms of civilization (behavioural modernity), with art, abstract thinking and symbolism and planning ahead, probably emerged between 150.000 and 75.000 years ago. And for most of our history, resources were very scarce and obtaining them was very work-intensive and required cooperation, periods where hunger reigned were common, and dangers large and small, from natural catastrophes to predatory animals and illnesses were very common.
Human beings survived because they banded together in groups and cooperated, so groups mean safety to us. It also meant that being kicked out was a terrifying danger. So those who prioritized the will of the group had better chances to survive and get ahead. And to this day, we very, very easily bend to group pressure and are afraid to say or do things that might upset the group and which might get us kicked out, and that instinct is far greater than out need to do what's right and just and true.
We also crave stability, since that too feels like saftety, so humans absolutely HATE change. So we put change off, even if it's necessary and sensible. (See resistance to climate change mitigation measures.)
We also want simplicity, since most people's brains do NOT deal well with complexity, so we crave simple solutions and black-and-white answers. We also don't do that well with diversity for that same reason, because for all the advantages diversity brings in the long run, like having more information and input, which allows us to find more creative and better solutions to complex problems and respond more flexible to new challenges, it also comes with more complexity, which, again, can feel very overwhelming to people and which we do not deal well with.
We're also short-sighted, since for most of our evolution, we had to think ahead a few days, maybe a full turn of the seasons or two at most. Anything that might have an impact ten, twenty, fourty years down the road? (Hello smokers!) Just doesn't really compute. It just doesn't feel real to us (btw, dito to most things we can't see, hear or touch. Hello covid denial.)
We also hate taking risks and maybe being wrong (because for most of history, being wrong often meant being hurt or being dead, for us and for our group), so we LOVE when someone leads us and takes that responsibility from us. Thing is, giving someone that kind of power also risks them abusing that power, and many do, since it means more resources and safety for their close family group. And they can use that very power we gave them to ward off criticism and negative consequences of their failure. And because being wrong carries risks and dangers, we also absolutely LOATHE taking responsibility for our mistakes and taking accountability for them and making amends (with the latter also usually costing precious and scarce resources, and maybe requiring to go against the group, so we prefer to victim blame instead).
Facing painful truths and building a better future requires overcoming these very human and very powerful instincts and traits, and that's really, REALLY hard to do for most people.
