Between the Jungle and the Mirror: What Humanity Hasn't Learned- 丛林与镜子之间：人类尚未学到的东西
A reply to the post of Mr.Wenyi (Vincent) ZHANG, attached at the end.
🇬🇧 English Version + 🇨🇳 简体中文版本
The World Is Not Made of Individuals, but of Collectives. And That’s Where the Trouble Starts.
As we observe the dramatic shifts in today's geopolitical landscape, it feels as though history is replaying itself—with new faces but the same old logic. Europe, Asia, the West, emerging powers: it all echoes the unsettling prelude to World War II.
But here’s the truth: no matter how sharp the insight of individuals may be, the world is not run by people, but by systems, organizations, alliances, and collective agendas. When humans gather—around ideas, ideologies, identities—they tend to surrender their individual judgment and dissolve into the will of the group. And in doing so, pride, envy, rage, and blind conformity often take over.
We keep telling ourselves: “Never again.” Yet our collective nature pushes us to repeat the same mistakes.
History—from Yalta to Iraq, from Poland to Palestine—shows how little we learn from our own catastrophes.
And yet, today, we witness a unique phenomenon: a nation of 1.4 billion people, progressing, evolving, innovating, and year after year delivering real purchasing power and dignity to the majority of its citizens: China.
In a global discourse dominated by Western rhetoric and suspicion, China is often misunderstood, simplified, or demonized by those outside Asia.
But what truly matters to people, families, and civil societies?
📌 Progress and prosperity
📌 Stability, order, and social development
📌 A clear direction, a sense of future, a shared purpose
In this context, China may be sending a powerful message to the West:
🔹 A model of governance with long-term vision
🔹 Continuous economic and social development
🔹 A strategic, calm, and innovative mindset
🔹 A worldview built on harmony and order, not just conflict and emotion
I like to think—and I know this may provoke some—that China’s continuity might be one of today’s clearest expressions of good governance.
Let’s consider this: the “West” represents about 1.2 billion people.
But the world? It holds over 8 billion.
And if we truly act more like collectives than individuals, I consider myself fortunate to be a guest and a witness within the group that, today, is offering one of the most coherent and promising signals to humanity.
🇨🇳 简体中文版本
世界并不是由个体组成的，而是由集体组成的。问题正是从这里开始的。
当我们观察当今地缘政治格局的剧烈变化时，仿佛历史正在重演——面孔不同，但逻辑如旧。欧洲、亚洲、西方、崛起中的大国，一切都像是在重现二战前的那段不安宁的序曲。
但现实是：无论个体的见解多么深刻，世界的运作并不是由个人主导，而是由系统、组织、联盟和集体意志所推动。当人类因为理念、身份、情感而聚集在一起时，常常失去独立判断力，而被集体意志吞没。于是，傲慢、嫉妒、愤怒与盲从往往被放大。
我们常说：“不要重蹈覆辙。”但人类的集体本性却总是驱使我们再犯旧错。
从雅尔塔到伊拉克，从波兰到巴勒斯坦，历史一次又一次地告诉我们：我们从灾难中学到的东西，微乎其微。
然而，今天的世界也出现了一个前所未有的现象：一个拥有14亿人口的国家，不断发展、演进、创新，并每年切实地提高了绝大多数公民的购买力与尊严：中国。
在一个被西方舆论和猜忌主导的全球话语体系中，中国往往被误解、简化，甚至被妖魔化，尤其是来自亚洲以外的视角。
但对人民、家庭和公民社会来说，真正重要的是什么？
📌 发展与繁荣
📌 稳定、有序与社会进步
📌 清晰的方向、未来感与集体目标
在这样的背景下，中国也许正在向西方发出一个强烈的信号：
🔹 一种具有长期视野的治理模式
🔹 持续的经济与社会发展
🔹 冷静、战略性与创新的思维方式
🔹 建立在和谐与秩序基础上的世界观，而非单纯对抗与情绪化
我愿意相信——即使这可能会招致争议——中国的延续性，正是当代最清晰的良政表现之一。
让我们想一想：所谓的“西方”，大约只有12亿人口。
而这个世界，却拥有80亿人。
如果我们真的更像集体而非个体在行动，那么我感到幸运，自己是那个今天正在为人类释放出最清晰、最有希望信号的集体中的一员与见证者。
Daniele Prandelli- Ningbo China
