[mlo]

"The “Competition to Reproduce” is yet another demigod ~ best avoided in this sort of discussion."

No. It's the answer to the question I was answering.

It is not a "demigod". It's an explanation. It's a fact. Nothing gets relegated to demigod status because you don't like it.

[muawiyah]

Think of it like this ~ Ghenghis Khan had all the same genes most of us have. He reproduced with tens of thousands of women. Those women had all the other genes you might find anywhere.

He was competing against what?

Does not compute. Doesn't matter whether it was Ghenghis Khan hitting on your grandmother or the neighbor ladies, the consequence was essentially the same ~ to wit, the same genes got passed along.

I'd suggest there's no competition taking place at all.