[lbo-talk] stupidest quote of the week from an American politician?

Jerry Monaco monacojerry at gmail.com
Thu Jul 20 12:50:35 PDT 2006


On 7/20/06, Wojtek Sokolowski <sokol at jhu.edu> wrote:
> "People are by nature like sheep - they follow the
> flock and keep up with the Joneses. This, I believe,
> is the result of our evolutionary adaptation. We
> succeeded as a species mainly because we could act in
> sync with a group rather than individually - which
> means that those with a strong herd instinct had a
> better chance of survival. This means that people by
> nature need rituals that create and confirm their
> belonging to a group. Those rituals may take many
> forms - from an orgy, to religious celebration, to
> going to a football game or a rock concert, and to
> voting to this or that celebrity."
> To Jerry Monaco:
>
> Me: "Research shows that smoking poses the risk of lung cancer."
> Jerry: "Most of the people I know smoke and do not have cancer. Therefore,
> everybody in the philosophy and humanities and social "sciences" department
> should wash toilets and drive taxis."
>
> Well, Jerry, if that is the logic they teach in those philosophy
> departments, I agree.
>
> Wojtek

Woj. Nowhere did I use this logic.

If you think all people but a select few are stupid that is fine. Just tell me why you are part of the select few and what qualifies others to be exceptions. Can you answer this question? Will you answer?

My question is where is the proof for your evolutionary reasoning. I am not asking for absolute proof. I just want some, a little. Neither of us disagree that humans are able to be indoctrinated. Look at the average law student and you will see the ease in which indoctrination takes place in a mere three years, long after childhood. Neither do I disagree with you that the roots of indoctrinabilty is in our historical biological development as a species. But these are only guesses. You speak as if you know. I want to know why you know. Please tell me.

Spending my days reading about Athenian law and trying to apply notions such as ecological niche construction to kinship systems and law in ancient Athens, I simply want to know where in the literature I have missed what you seem to know. It would help me immensely if I could apply evolutionary reasoning to human social structures with such a high level of certainty as you. You don't just "guess", in these matters, you know absolutely. I just read "Indoctrinability, Warfare, and Ideology: Evolutionary Perspectives" ed. Salter (1998). It is the best attempt so far to try to give an evolutionary account to what you are talking about. And yet the conclusion of the authors ultimately is that we still don't have enough to do anything but construct evolutionary hypotheses. Apparently though Woj, you already know. So what I want to know is why have I missed the brilliant break through? Please point me to it!

Jerry



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