I just had a bible rant
complete with chapter and verse as a comment on one of my blogs.
The biggest lie that
permeates our society – the foundation of our American philosophy – is that all
men are created equal.
All men should have equal
rights; but the old argument between nature and nurture addresses the fallacy
that all men are created (born) as equals.
Severe retardation is not an
inherited trait; but borderline retardation (barely functional IQ’s) is passed
through the genes. All people are not
equal in their mental and physical abilities: an indisputable fact.
People with low IQ’s are
easily influenced by any movement that will give them recognition and praise:
these are the people that are prayed on by religious fundamentalist churches,
political propaganda and charismatic snake oil salesmen.
However, our individual make
up is more complicated than just our intellect.
Who we are can be generally defined by our DNA; our social environment;
and our education or access to information.
Our color of hair and eyes,
general appearance, disposition, and in some degree our intelligence is
influenced by our DNA: traits handed down from our parents and their blood
line.
Our belief system, values,
dress, actions and civility are primarily determined by the social environment
we are raised in and to some extent live in as adults. We all had little control of our
indoctrination during childhood.
Our prospect to live
logically and process information at a higher level is determined by our access
to information, the depth of our experiences and opportunities.
This is all generalization;
but does offer some food for thought on why people are the way they are.
the Ol’Buzzard
I'm going to be my usual pedantic self and contradict you. Most severe mental retardation (IQ below 50) is inherited. In fact, severe retardation is more likely to be inherited than is mild retardation. Mild retardation is more likely to result from environmental factors (poor maternal nutrition, exposure in utero to toxins, a maternal illness such as rubella). The brain is so complex that multiple genetic factors go into its development; unless someone is swimming out of a very small gene pool, it's kind of crap shoot as to what sort of nasty recessive stuff can be hiding in the weeds.
ReplyDeleteAs to the philosophical question of all men being equal, one could argue that "equal" depends on the context. Are we all born with equal abilities? No, of course not. Are we, in the words of the Declaration of Independence, created equal? If the context is "in the eyes of the law" (or, for the religiously minded, "in the eyes of God") then the answer should be yes. Rich or poor, smart or pathetically stupid, you should be treated the same by the justice system.
You've gotten me thinking. My handful of followers can blame you if I end up spitting out another long blog post that will bore the pants off everyone except the author.
Looking forward to your post.
DeleteO'B
Agree with Nan. Also the impact of our DNA on our development is a long way from understood. Much of the nurture stuff gets filtered through our hard wired filters. It is hard enough to sort out genetics and environment when assessing the potential of a bull to pass on growth traits to offspring when we have millions of data sets and a relatively narrow target. Doing the same for humans is virtually impossible. Nan, write your piece.
DeleteYes, inequality exists in our abilities and faculties. And in many other traits as well, both genetic and social. But all people are born equal in their worth and value as human beings. I think that's the point of that belief. And a crucial belief it is against evil and tyranny.
ReplyDeleteI agree
DeleteO'B
Equality, talk about a subject with some depth!
ReplyDeleteThen again as the saying goes, 'God made man and woman; Colonel Colt made them equal'."
that is one way to look at it: but a stupid person with a gun is more dangerous than a stupid person without a gun
DeleteO'B
You really cannot co relate religious belief with low intelligence. I have said it before, some of the most intelligent and ambitious people have been heroin addicts. The problem being, of course, their intelligence is focused and wasted, but highly concentrated on the single aim of obtaining more heroin and if that energy could have been used to solve say,finding cheaper passive energy sources, the earth would be a much better place. I would say the same thing about religion. It is not about intelligence. I have known a lot of highly intelligent people who have spent years rationalizing religion. Why waste this intellectual energy on what I consider a personality disorder? When you could focus on something useful, like learning how to make a martini that didn't taste like denatured poison? I agree with you about equal rights. I also think intelligence is a roll of the genetic dice as well as being influenced by environmental factors, so really both points of view are correct. There is a difference between intellectual capacity and willful stupidity. The one absolute I agree with Mr. Buzzard here is, You can't fix stupid...
ReplyDeleteMainly referint to fundamentalist - they are willing to believe anything.
DeleteO'B
I don't have any background in DNA or any of that stuff. I know my father was pretty smart, I am brilliant!, well hung, and humble! ha ha ha ha ha Traits that were not passed on to my children. Of course, I have always secretly had a suspicion that my first wife was a cheating whore so that would explain it! ha ha ha ha ha I have recently had an opportunity to witness the "March of the Morons" and I am currently reevaluating my views. I think most of the world's problems can be placed squarely on the shoulders of the religious fundamentalist. Fanatics will thump their bible and wave that flag while smiling and sticking a knife in your back. I do wonder if insanity is inherited. Many religious nutbags children run away to have a life free of religious insanity. . good post as always. I am jealous......
ReplyDeleteNature vs nurture
DeleteO'B
my daddy's people were and are Baptist. but there was division in the ranks..my grandmother was foot washing and my grandpa was hard shell..my mother's people were Catholic..neither of my parents were church goers or very devout ..I was allowed to pick my religion...I picked Catholicism...for one reason and one reason only.to piss off my daddys mother... I loved being called a papist..which she pronounced paptist..I can't even imagine what she would think of me being a pagan.
ReplyDeleteReligion is a social gathering. When you are born and raised in a religious environment the odds are you will be religious... If we were born in Iran we would probably be Moslems.
DeleteO'B
Equality is merely an ideal.
ReplyDeleteI think people need something in life to be passionate about, particularly when they aren't very creative, and something to give them a sense of meaning and purpose. The majority of people are extremely gullible, and mean-spirited when part of a group.
Agree
DeleteO'B
Interesting comment, Rubye Jack. Most people in any given group would normally begin to hate each other, but give them an outsider to attack and they always become the very bestest of friends. Until they get rid of the outsider, then they go back to destroying each other. I am making this observation from a lifetime of experience and research.
ReplyDeleteI define religious fanatics as interfering, uncontrollable, iron-tongued, meager-minded zealots who feel compelled to announce to all who cross their crooked paths that theirs is the only true religion. Their minds are not entirely empty, but rather stuck on one noisy track and one track only.
ReplyDeleteIf the practice of religion makes no improvement in a person’s outward talk and actions – if s/he continues to be just as greedy, spiteful or idiotic as before – then this practice is illusory. A great interest in religion is meaningless unless it spurs on better behavior and greater thought.
As long as it is a personal and kept personal there is only small harm. However, some religious beliefs are dangerous regardless.
DeleteO'B
The difference between religions is like the difference between syphylis and gonorhea - a matter of degree; but non of it is good for you.
ReplyDeletethe Ol'Buzzard