The Golden Rule

[Eilonnwy]

If the golden rule has its basis in evolution and chemical reactions in the brain, etc., it seems like it would then be easy to follow because always following it would seem to be the natural result of the evolution and chemical reactions. From an atheistic point of view, why is it so hard to practice the golden rule all the time?

Because life is not that simple? Just because it has an evolutionary basis doesn't mean we would be "programmed" to behave this way and therefore, should find it easier to follow. Social conventions are conventions that we have developed for the good of society, that doesn't necessarily mean everyone will follow them. It really is a complex subject, with no easy answer. One explanation, I would say, is Natural Selection promotes the propagation of the species by that species ability to survive and then the ability to procreate. So, social needs are constructed because in some species they promote the ability to survive and ability to procreate. However, this doesn't negate individual need and how evolution influences us that way. Evolution is not perfect in the sense that it doesn't produce a perfect species or being, but one that is successful in surviving and procreating for the circumstances of it's life.