Basically this is the best I could do for 'short form' - it's an hour.
Here's the point - organisms are groups of individuals (cells, genes, etc) and they are selected at many levels at the same time...
Let me give you an example with simple hypotheticals:
Say there was a gene that made you hotter: that gene would be selected for individually because it would get you more kids. The specific gene would (though it wouldn't if you were a fucking incel like @CokeGreaterThanPepsi).
Say that a bunch of genes team together to produce a neural circuit that understands concepts like 'that chick would fuck me' (no individual gene can understand the over-arching concept by itself) - that circuit can be selected for (the genes will be 'back-selected' in that, those genes will be forwarded in a way AS IF they were selected, but it's only because they are a part of the circuit).
The idea is that - on whatever level a selection pressure (i.e., the ability to have more grandkids) can exist (say human groups are more cohesive and produce better economies like the protestants did in Geneva - see DSW's book 'Darwin's Cathedral') there can be selection for that level (religiousness; and every component level -> religiosity, the brain circuits involved, the genes involved) and that will bring along something that looks like gene selection for the genes.
One of DSW's main points is that Selfish Individuals out-compete cooperative individuals on a one-on-one basis very often. However, cooperative groups out-compete selfish groups.
So a group of cooperative people will always outcompete a group of selfish individuals. There is a lot of math, simulations, experiment and modeling that went into these findings as this has been a HOTLY contested area for the last 45 years. So it's not just 'his opinion'.
But the idea is that the body is a good parable - things like hearts and lungs can be selected for at the level of their emergent cooperation (the genes that make them don't know they are cooperating, but they are and the produce something emergent that is very important on a systems-level).
This has a lot of really important implications for society...
The bottom line is:
1. work to make sure all merit has an opportunity to flourish.
2. Fight corruption desperately.
3. Great things require cooperative systems.
4. It is sadly easy to destroy complex systems with selfish actions (the dark side of the force is more powerful instantly, the light side makes everything go; or it's easier to destroy a TV by throwing a phone into it and getting temporary fear from species in the room, dogs, say - than it is to build a phone or TV and humans benefit tremendously from the complex systems that generate phones and TVs).
Any questions please feel free... @Swaye @YellowSnow @MisterEm
