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Topic: politics and neuroscience< Next Oldest | Next Newest >
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Malcolm Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:30  Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

Heh.

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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GORDON Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:33 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

TFA managed to stick to the facts until the second to last paragraph:

QUOTE
An evolutionary bias against disgusting things makes a lot of sense -- avoiding rotting corpses and dirty toilets keeps us from getting sick. But it seems that being reminded of this deeply ingrained fear can also make us fear "the other," leading to xenophobia and other more conservative philosophies, studies say.


I know "Remember to be xenophobic!" was right at the top of the latest "Conservative Talking Points" newsletter.


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Malcolm Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:38 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

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conservative

I believe it's being used in the classical sense here, with respect to societal change.

QUOTE
Conservatism as a political and social philosophy promotes retaining traditional social institutions in the context of the culture and civilization.
...
Xenophobia is the unreasoned fear of that which is perceived to be foreign or strange.


Sticking to tradition simply because you don't like or are frightened by new things is a good way to be described as xenophobic.


--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:39 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

What does fear have to do with it?

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Malcolm Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:42 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE


(GORDON @ Oct. 30 2014,12:39)
QUOTE
What does fear have to do with it?

Fear and disgust prevent change or even proper interaction with objects.  You generally shy away from things you label with either of those qualities and your analytical brain never gets to chew on them because of the overwhelming emotional response to avoid it.

I suspect it's the root cause of most phobias in a great many people.  Fear generally lives inside disgust.


Edited by Malcolm on Oct. 30 2014,10:43

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:45 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

I dislike the taste of spinach.  I think it is disgusting.  I have no fear of spinach.

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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,10:59 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE


(GORDON @ Oct. 30 2014,12:45)
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I dislike the taste of spinach.  I think it is disgusting.  I have no fear of spinach.

You'll go out of your way to avoid it and not consume it because you don't want to deal with the bad taste?

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,11:21 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE


(Malcolm @ Oct. 30 2014,13:59)
QUOTE

(GORDON @ Oct. 30 2014,12:45)
QUOTE
I dislike the taste of spinach.  I think it is disgusting.  I have no fear of spinach.

You'll go out of your way to avoid it and not consume it because you don't want to deal with the bad taste?

Just saying "fear" has nothing to do with it.

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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,11:38 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE


(GORDON @ Oct. 30 2014,13:21)
QUOTE

(Malcolm @ Oct. 30 2014,13:59)
QUOTE

(GORDON @ Oct. 30 2014,12:45)
QUOTE
I dislike the taste of spinach.  I think it is disgusting.  I have no fear of spinach.

You'll go out of your way to avoid it and not consume it because you don't want to deal with the bad taste?

Just saying "fear" has nothing to do with it.

Maybe that's a bit of a strong word.  Substitute "entrenched avoidance" if you want.  Point being, you're letting your aesthetics (taste) take over the decision process.

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,12:04 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

And yet I don't.  I know spinach is good for me, so on italian night I eat a serving of it.  I don't have any kind of fight or flight response when confronting spinach, I don't get an adrenaline boost, I don't have any kind of anxiety about it, and I don't have nightmares about it.  It's a simple taste bud response, or brain interpretation of the taste buds, or whatever.

I submit that one can dislike, or have distaste for, lots of things and ideas without actually fearing them.


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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,12:37 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

One wonders where the distaste comes from.

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,12:50 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

I probably got sexually molested by spinach as a young child and i repressed the memory.

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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,12:57 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

QUOTE
I don't have any kind of anxiety about it

You don't think about the shitty taste of spinach when you eat it?


--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,12:59 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE


(Malcolm @ Oct. 30 2014,15:57)
QUOTE
QUOTE
I don't have any kind of anxiety about it

You don't think about the shitty taste of spinach when you eat it?

I would have a pretty flat EKG while eating it.  I typically just eat the serving in one big bite to get it over with.  Or mix it in with the sauce.

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Vince Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,13:41 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE


(GORDON @ Oct. 30 2014,12:33)
QUOTE
TFA managed to stick to the facts until the second to last paragraph:

QUOTE
An evolutionary bias against disgusting things makes a lot of sense -- avoiding rotting corpses and dirty toilets keeps us from getting sick. But it seems that being reminded of this deeply ingrained fear can also make us fear "the other," leading to xenophobia and other more conservative philosophies, studies say.


I know "Remember to be xenophobic!" was right at the top of the latest "Conservative Talking Points" newsletter.

I think nature trains us to be conservative (with a small "c" ) and to some extent xenophobic.  How many cultures were wiped out when they made contact and mingled with another culture that brought the some sort of pox?

I'm sure the Jews in the days of the Old Testament had no idea about parasites, but sticking to the old ways about not eating pork and all the rules about washing served them well and kept them in good health compared to many of the tribes around them.

The animals and peoples that are open to trying new things either made some pretty significant observations/discoveries or didn't last too long.  I wouldn't guess it's a dominant trait.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,13:56 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

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The animals and peoples that are open to trying new things either made some pretty significant observations/discoveries or didn't last too long.

Uh ... no.  Many animals have strong exploratory instincts.  Nature also equipped them with the means to communicate those explorations to others.


Edited by Malcolm on Oct. 30 2014,13:57

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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Vince Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,14:47 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

Yeah, I remember that herd of liberal white tail deer that was really curious about the wild coyotes and decided to go play with them and join their pack.  It was so sweet and beautiful!
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Malcolm Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,15:01 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

Deer are bright enough to keep the fuck away from carnivorous things with big teeth.  They've been prey long enough.  But they're also bright enough to forage for food in locations previously unknown to them and go back with other deer.  Things like mice and snakes are genetically predisposed to taking chances exploring new places heretofore uncharted.  Which is how they end up in toilets.

Edited by Malcolm on Oct. 30 2014,15:02

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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Vince Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,16:11 Skip to the previous post in this topic. Skip to the next post in this topic. Ignore posts   QUOTE

Deer aren't that bright.  In Fairfield Bay where my parents used to live, no hunting was allowed.  Where my dad owns his woodland, we do hunt.  In Fairfield Bay, the deer are a nuisance.  They have no flight reflex.  It reached the point where before they moved my mom actually had to bump a doe with her car to get her to move out of the road.  She was standing there staring at her for about five minutes even though my mom was blasting the horn and hanging her head out the car window yelling and shooing.

At my dad's place, they're a lot more skittish because the deer without a decent flight response get culled out pretty quick and aren't given the opportunity to spread their seed for many hunting seasons the way the more cautious ones are.
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Malcolm Search for posts by this member.
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PostIcon Posted on: Oct. 30 2014,17:22 Skip to the previous post in this topic.  Ignore posts   QUOTE

Fine.  Evolution gave deer a free pass and they've inexplicably survived.

--------------
Diogenes of Sinope:

"It is not that I am mad, it is only that my head is different from yours."

"Other dogs bite only their enemies, whereas I bite also my friends in order to save them."

Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC, SSC:

"Better dead than smeg."
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