We are the losers, my friend
and we'll keep on losing till the end...
and never mind the love.

(SusuPetal and AKI, it's nice to hear your voices again.)

There's a lot of theory to explain our passionately loving, wise functionality now, but...on more than one level, that is mostly irrelevant.

The major point ( definitely not original with me plus  embodied in many cultures and philosophies before Jung brought it to psychology)  is that all human  constructions,  attributes ( tribes, love, faith, character, patience, persistence, hope - or any one we can ever know or experience) contain
within them a continuum of strengths and dangers.  Every single one. 

I know of none that I can think of that doesn't have the "shadow" as a potential or  actuality.

This knowledge is humbling, releasing and pisses me off.  Safety and perfection are illusory, f--k it all :)