we do not sit on top of a heap of a fairly bad lot

[Klpno]

Hello everyone

I'd like to ask about the meaning of "we do not sit on top of a heap of a fairly bad lot" in the following context:

What is at the basis of this supposed “other way”? Does it rest on
the innate superiority of the beings that make up the human race to
every other being? If so, then it is easy to see why the suggestion that
there might be intelligent life elsewhere—either in this physical universe or in the realms of higher frequency—is profoundly unsettling to people of that mind-set. The primary consequences of this are felt first not in religion but in technology and politics. Perhaps we do not sit on top of a heap of a fairly bad lot in this dimension of the physical after all. The realm of the invisible has long emerged from being the preserve of mystics and visionaries. Out of the invisible comes
TV and radio programs, microwaves, cell phones, devastating nuclear
radiation, and weapons guidance systems.

[Mister Micawber]

.
We do not sit on top of a heap of a fairly bad lot = the beings that make up the human race are not innately superior to every other being.
.
_________________
Native English teacher at Mister Micawber's

[Klpno]

Thank you very much, Mister Micawber!