Comments on: Report: Biology May Shape Political Views

By: War and homo sapiens « My agnostic views & images I like

War and homo sapiens « My agnostic views & images I like — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:00:37 +0000

[...] Report: Biology May Shape Political Views Posted in about death, culture, history, living, thinking about politics, writings. Tags: evolution, Political science, Primatology. [...]

By: JSpencer

JSpencer — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 16:30:48 +0000

As usual you change your story as you go along. That's the problem with living in a fantasy world I imagine.

By: jwest

jwest — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:50:40 +0000

Spence,

“I hunt, I fish……”

Good for you. Trouble is, you’re just a few millennia too late.

Meat has been replaced by money as far as providing goes, but don’t feel bad – you’re moving up the evolutionary ladder.

If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go do the prom queen again.

By: JSpencer

JSpencer — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 03:01:47 +0000

“…which hold that political beliefs are shaped by people’s environment and experiences”

Gee, d'ya think??? Who'da guessed??? Other then the obvious, I suppose this might venture into the bell curve territory.

Btw, jwest, et al: I hunt, I fish, I'm about the outdoors thing, self-sufficiency, eating meat I shoot, etc. and I'm guessing you don't. So I reckon you know what you can do with your cute little theory.

By: JWindish

JWindish — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 02:17:00 +0000

Great links Jeff! I really enjoyed the Ted Talk. Well worth the 18 minutes. I recommend it to everyone in the thread.

By: DLS

DLS — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:58:24 +0000

In a sense, you're right, insofar as with maturity normally comes conservatism (beginning with the realization that stupid or annoying behavior by juveniles and young “adults” is stupid or annoying, often followed by a newly found appreciation for what parents have to face, even before becoming a parent one's self). I say that is biological, in large part endocrinological (triggered by wrapup of physical maturity, not limited to the completed development of the frontal lobes). What also happens typically is one gets out of school and gets a better job and higher income, and if awake, is led to view with skepticism (at least) how much he or she pays in taxes, and for what these are being paid.

By: DLS

DLS — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:54:45 +0000

There's something to it if you want to engage in coarse characterization with a common duality that appeals to many if they want to look back to the positive, ambitious times as late as the 1960s with modern liberalism (before the late 1960s perversion from strife, riots, and radicalism that taints liberalism to this day along with other failures from going too far with interventionism, even if originally well-intended).

That is the obvious division of optimists (positive, liberals) and pessimists (negative, conservatives) which has always been a handy tool (or weapon) to use politically.

(Effective, too. Show young, attractive, smiling, sweet-and-exciting-talking liberal against grizzled old buzzard saying simply "No, no, no." Repeat until elections.)

By: roro80

roro80 — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 21:11:29 +0000

I'm always highly sceptical of these evo-pop-psych things — they usually take some crappy stereotype (men can't HELP but cheat!) and then say: see? It's just in their nature! As for this in particular, what about all those people who have some life-changing event (a trip, a disaster, a disease, a book, an encounter with a person, etc) that turns their potical views dramatically? Do the wires re-hook in their brain all of the sudden?
Distopia scenario: the government does in-utero tests on all fetuses, and selectively aborts any of them with the “wiring” to oppose the ruling party…

By: jeff_pickens

jeff_pickens — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 21:00:53 +0000

One other interesting link:
"The Difference Between Liberals and Conservatives" on TEDtalks.

http://onegoodmove.org/1gm/1gmarchive/2008/09/j...

By: jeff_pickens

jeff_pickens — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 20:20:44 +0000

I loved this comment!

By: pacatrue

pacatrue — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 19:49:38 +0000

I haven't read the technical report, but coming from a cognitive science background, I am skeptical in the extreme.

By: jwest

jwest — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 19:16:44 +0000

I tend to agree with the premise that individuals are “wired” differently, and that this difference tends to show itself in the division of the parties.

Since the early dawn of man, some ventured out to hunt, explore and advance civilization. These leaders ate meat, grew larger and more intelligent and took the best breeding females.

Others stayed in the cave practicing their primeval interpretive dance, painting crude pictures on the wall with bat guano and whining about how unfair it was they weren’t getting laid.

Today, you’ll find the same two groups locked in political struggle. Nothing’s changed.