Are you like George Price? Then
take the advice of an old man
who has helped the poor yet knows
he'd be swept away like a broken toy
if he hadn't held back a few coins:
selfishness and altruism are
the vegetables and Jesus of this world--
If you want to survive, even thrive,
savor these staples; both should be served.
Notes: George Price (1922-1975) was a man of astounding genius. He was a population geneticist, but did research in many areas. His notable achievements are the Price equation, an equation of kin selection and evolutionary altruism, still in use to this day, and work on natural selection and evolutionary stable strategies. His was unstable and never stayed in the same field for long. I think he suffered from a type of high functioning autism; he had a difficult time connecting with others, and did a lot of his research on his own. When he went to London, he visited the renowned evolutionary biologist, W.D. Hamilton. Hamilton at first refused to see this odd man, but when he did, he was astonished by Price's research. He then took him down the hall and said, "This is your office now." Science is a team endeavor; it is very rare that someone develops theories completely on his own.
But his difficulties remained. At first a militant atheist, he had a conversion experience and became a fundamentalist Christian. In my opinion, his mental instability needed a strict famework, in this case Christianity, to prevent him from going mad. George Price being George Price, he took his new religion very seriously. He gave everything up and dedicated himself to working with the homeless in London. Many were alcoholics who took advantage of his good nature. Five years after his conversion in 1975, he was with a group of squatters who were forcibly evicted. George Price then took a nail cutter and severed his carotid artery and died. It is said that he was in despair because he could no longer help the poor, but I'm not sure. He had cut himself off from all support.
At the funeral, two famous British scientists were present; the rest were derelicts--not your average funeral! He is buried in an unmarked grave.
His story is told in the excellent book, The Price of Altruism by Oren Harman.
The poem deals with the necessity of finding a balance in life; the necessity to avoid extremism even in altruism.
The poem first appeared in Sunstone, issue 171, June, 2013.
take the advice of an old man
who has helped the poor yet knows
he'd be swept away like a broken toy
if he hadn't held back a few coins:
selfishness and altruism are
the vegetables and Jesus of this world--
If you want to survive, even thrive,
savor these staples; both should be served.
Notes: George Price (1922-1975) was a man of astounding genius. He was a population geneticist, but did research in many areas. His notable achievements are the Price equation, an equation of kin selection and evolutionary altruism, still in use to this day, and work on natural selection and evolutionary stable strategies. His was unstable and never stayed in the same field for long. I think he suffered from a type of high functioning autism; he had a difficult time connecting with others, and did a lot of his research on his own. When he went to London, he visited the renowned evolutionary biologist, W.D. Hamilton. Hamilton at first refused to see this odd man, but when he did, he was astonished by Price's research. He then took him down the hall and said, "This is your office now." Science is a team endeavor; it is very rare that someone develops theories completely on his own.
But his difficulties remained. At first a militant atheist, he had a conversion experience and became a fundamentalist Christian. In my opinion, his mental instability needed a strict famework, in this case Christianity, to prevent him from going mad. George Price being George Price, he took his new religion very seriously. He gave everything up and dedicated himself to working with the homeless in London. Many were alcoholics who took advantage of his good nature. Five years after his conversion in 1975, he was with a group of squatters who were forcibly evicted. George Price then took a nail cutter and severed his carotid artery and died. It is said that he was in despair because he could no longer help the poor, but I'm not sure. He had cut himself off from all support.
At the funeral, two famous British scientists were present; the rest were derelicts--not your average funeral! He is buried in an unmarked grave.
His story is told in the excellent book, The Price of Altruism by Oren Harman.
The poem deals with the necessity of finding a balance in life; the necessity to avoid extremism even in altruism.
The poem first appeared in Sunstone, issue 171, June, 2013.
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