The issue of brain differences in the nut shell

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MongGrel

Lifer
Dec 3, 2013
38,466
3,067
121
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-human-beast/201104/conservatives-big-fear-brain-study-finds

Is there hope or is it hopeless.

We have gone over this topic for sometime now. Have any conservatives begun to suspect there may be something wrong with their thinking? The evidence is profound that when it comes to political inability to compromise, the conservatives are the ones who are defective. But even that obvious fact seems to be denied by them. They are too pure of morality to compromise with evil, no?

Almost seems like a Robin Williams tribute at this point.

I have a sneaking suspicion he just got fed up with it himself lately.

RIP Robin.
 

D-Man

Platinum Member
Oct 18, 1999
2,991
0
71
Moonbeam I got up today as with everyday I went to breakfast with a friend At the restaurant we chatted with other customers and some friends. I returned home and as I got out of the car I took a minute to enjoy the beauty of my surroundings and thought to myself what a wonderful day this would be. As I loaded up a laptop I went to facebook and saw a post by a musician I played with many years ago. He gave tribute to his father for the gift of music his father bestowed upon him. I commented that I to give thanks to his father as he gave me the same gift. My wife also a musician passed that gift down to our 5 children and our granddaughter a Violin Player and a Singer. He mentioned our drummer who had recently passed and the warm memories we have of being together and playing all over the Midwest and the South. My Son got married Saturday and I checked the picture of him and his wife. So many friends said such kind things of love and encouragement to them and myself. I am finishing up with the i3 Laptop a customer gave me for repairing the same model for them. I was surprised, I waived the fee because they had a financial hardship and they gave me their 2nd broken laptop. I am going to reboot this laptop for the last time dbl check to make sure I have everything I want is loaded and I am going to play my Beautiful Solid Wood Martin Acoustic Guitar for a spell.

So the point of all of this is if you are ever in the Dundee IL area PM me spend a couple of days at my home and relax let the CBD go for a bit. If you are married bring the wife. A change of lifestyle is good. The world will still be here for awhile.
 

Matt1970

Lifer
Mar 19, 2007
12,320
3
0
The first problem with this is that you are not able to judge liberal fear because you are controlled by fear and see others as being like you.

Secondly, liberals can make appeals to fear, but unlike you, they can be better reasoned out of irrational fear.

Thirdly, these are scientific facts which you deny in knee jerk fashion because you feel such reactions make you inferior. They do, but only in an environment where the threats you see are self invented. In an environment filled with real external dangers, your reactivity can give you an edge. The greater the danger out there the greater success leaping from the frying pan becomes. When the pan is sitting on the side of a lit stove, however, you will be the one who lands in the fire with frequency.

It's cause I secretly hate my mother because I never got to have the haircut I wanted in grade school.
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,904
6,787
126
Hayabusa Rider: I used to know everything, but now I leave that to younger people ;)

M: You do know everything when you know you don't know.

H: More seriously, I am aware I am liable to err, yet there are some things I hold as absolutes. One would be the needless harm of an innocent is an evil. I don't know what Sufism would say about that, but this my belief, my choice.

M: I don't think I or a Sufi would disagree. But I can see where if a people raise their kids say as Christians they should be exterminated for the sake of the kids. This is what I am talking about. There are absolutes but is what we thing their application the real thing.

H: That being the case, I take issue with others. See the exchange starting post 117.

To begin with I consider our war with Iraq a violation of my above stated principle. I also believe that we as a people are obliged to hold accountable those who committed such acts of war. The first part is blamed on the Right, and I do not argue the point, but then we come to the second, accountability. The self described liberal, the anti-conservative, chooses to ignore any of the consequences of the war, but goes further to argue against any investigation and to defend his prefered leader based on political considerations in prior times. One side commits the crime, the other ensures that there are no consequences. In this case I have trouble identifying someone who I can say is a worthwhile human. Perhaps you understand why I'm not impressed by what people call themselves.

M: I don't know where Jhhnn is coming from on that. The only think I can see he was right about is that nothing ever happened and probably because it can't. I live with this feeling all the time, that there is nothing that can be done because we know not what we do, that we are too deeply asleep.

This frustrates me deeply and it tempts me to take up the ring of power to right what I see as wrong, what I know in my being is unjust. It causes me to feel righteous madness.

This is how crazy I am. I remember when the Serbs threatened a killing spree and these were my actually thoughts. If the Serbs attack in Bosnia 250,000 people will die. If I had the ring of power this is what I would have told them:

You are about to embark on a campaign that will kill 250,000 people. Go ahead and make your move, but if you do I will bomb your country until 250,000 are dead. We will have the same level of death, but it will be your rather than theirs. Make your choice. If the world followed that plan universally, I believe the days genocide would have ended at 250,000 dead. Genocide is something that folk feel they can pull off without consequence. This kind of madness I believe first seized me the day as a child I say the Day the Earth Stood Still. The irony to me was that the actual death toll was 250,000 as I recall.

If I were Obama you can bet your ass I would have been an accounting or I would be dead. I sometimes wonder if, when you become president, some part of the government reminds you that you have a family to which bad things might happen.

Anyway, in this and many other areas, Obama is a profound disappointment to me.

Anyway, I believe the rage against injustice burns strong in you and me, and we are drowning in our tears.

Maybe there's a God who straightens such things out in the next life. My friend LunarRay, I believe,takes comfort in that. All I see is the cold benign indifference of the Universe.

My life is in a Haiku written by a practitioner of Zen on the death of his son:

This little tear drop world

It may be only a tear drop

And yet, and yet
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,904
6,787
126
Moonbeam I got up today as with everyday I went to breakfast with a friend At the restaurant we chatted with other customers and some friends. I returned home and as I got out of the car I took a minute to enjoy the beauty of my surroundings and thought to myself what a wonderful day this would be. As I loaded up a laptop I went to facebook and saw a post by a musician I played with many years ago. He gave tribute to his father for the gift of music his father bestowed upon him. I commented that I to give thanks to his father as he gave me the same gift. My wife also a musician passed that gift down to our 5 children and our granddaughter a Violin Player and a Singer. He mentioned our drummer who had recently passed and the warm memories we have of being together and playing all over the Midwest and the South. My Son got married Saturday and I checked the picture of him and his wife. So many friends said such kind things of love and encouragement to them and myself. I am finishing up with the i3 Laptop a customer gave me for repairing the same model for them. I was surprised, I waived the fee because they had a financial hardship and they gave me their 2nd broken laptop. I am going to reboot this laptop for the last time dbl check to make sure I have everything I want is loaded and I am going to play my Beautiful Solid Wood Martin Acoustic Guitar for a spell.

So the point of all of this is if you are ever in the Dundee IL area PM me spend a couple of days at my home and relax let the CBD go for a bit. If you are married bring the wife. A change of lifestyle is good. The world will still be here for awhile.

Thank you D-Man. My Dad was born in Gillespie and played the ukulele. Nice post.
 

werepossum

Elite Member
Jul 10, 2006
29,873
463
126
Moonbeam I got up today as with everyday I went to breakfast with a friend At the restaurant we chatted with other customers and some friends. I returned home and as I got out of the car I took a minute to enjoy the beauty of my surroundings and thought to myself what a wonderful day this would be. As I loaded up a laptop I went to facebook and saw a post by a musician I played with many years ago. He gave tribute to his father for the gift of music his father bestowed upon him. I commented that I to give thanks to his father as he gave me the same gift. My wife also a musician passed that gift down to our 5 children and our granddaughter a Violin Player and a Singer. He mentioned our drummer who had recently passed and the warm memories we have of being together and playing all over the Midwest and the South. My Son got married Saturday and I checked the picture of him and his wife. So many friends said such kind things of love and encouragement to them and myself. I am finishing up with the i3 Laptop a customer gave me for repairing the same model for them. I was surprised, I waived the fee because they had a financial hardship and they gave me their 2nd broken laptop. I am going to reboot this laptop for the last time dbl check to make sure I have everything I want is loaded and I am going to play my Beautiful Solid Wood Martin Acoustic Guitar for a spell.

So the point of all of this is if you are ever in the Dundee IL area PM me spend a couple of days at my home and relax let the CBD go for a bit. If you are married bring the wife. A change of lifestyle is good. The world will still be here for awhile.
What a beautiful little story.

The kind of story Moonie used to post before he got hung up on his mental superiority . . .
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,904
6,787
126
What a beautiful little story.

The kind of story Moonie used to post before he got hung up on his mental superiority . . .

No no no, I just decided it was time to help the rest of you be as superior as I am. What's the fun of being light years ahead of everybody if you have nobody to share it with.
 

BoberFett

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
37,562
9
81
No no no, I just decided it was time to help the rest of you be as superior as I am. What's the fun of being light years ahead of everybody if you have nobody to share it with.

I'm sure the nice young men in their clean white coats love to share stories with you.
 

cubby1223

Lifer
May 24, 2004
13,518
42
86
I'm sure the nice young men in their clean white coats love to share stories with you.

Yes, Mr. Beam, everything's brain damaged

tumblr_lsx2jisXtm1qc63sno1_500.png
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,904
6,787
126
LMAO!!!!! Liberals think they're superior to other people. LMAO!!!!!!

It doesn't work that way. Because you, unlike me, are not aware of your own self hate, you have no idea you project that feeling out on the world and feel that others are competing with you on the matter of superiority. I, on the other hand, recognize such feelings as my own mental illness and pay no attention to them. In short your inability to recognize your inner condition automatically makes me superior. In short again, we are both infected with feelings of inferiority but you believe yours is true and I know it was because we were forced to believe in lies. The difference between you and me then is a state of awareness about a simple truth you don't want to see and I had to face. I used to be as ignorant as you are
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
74,904
6,787
126
Yes, Mr. Beam, everything's brain damaged

tumblr_lsx2jisXtm1qc63sno1_500.png

Ridicule is what damaged your brain and it's ridicule you try to use on me. You were beaten to it long ago. The contempt you level at me can never equal the contempt I was taught to level against myself. You will find now however, that you have no leverage. I know the game you play and the pain you don't know you feel. I became aware of it. I went into the dark you fear. What is dark for you is no longer dark for me. Cheers.
 

Zorkorist

Diamond Member
Apr 17, 2007
6,861
3
76
Hayabusa Rider: I used to know everything, but now I leave that to younger people ;)

M: You do know everything when you know you don't know.

H: More seriously, I am aware I am liable to err, yet there are some things I hold as absolutes. One would be the needless harm of an innocent is an evil. I don't know what Sufism would say about that, but this my belief, my choice.

M: I don't think I or a Sufi would disagree. But I can see where if a people raise their kids say as Christians they should be exterminated for the sake of the kids. This is what I am talking about. There are absolutes but is what we thing their application the real thing.

H: That being the case, I take issue with others. See the exchange starting post 117.

To begin with I consider our war with Iraq a violation of my above stated principle. I also believe that we as a people are obliged to hold accountable those who committed such acts of war. The first part is blamed on the Right, and I do not argue the point, but then we come to the second, accountability. The self described liberal, the anti-conservative, chooses to ignore any of the consequences of the war, but goes further to argue against any investigation and to defend his prefered leader based on political considerations in prior times. One side commits the crime, the other ensures that there are no consequences. In this case I have trouble identifying someone who I can say is a worthwhile human. Perhaps you understand why I'm not impressed by what people call themselves.

M: I don't know where Jhhnn is coming from on that. The only think I can see he was right about is that nothing ever happened and probably because it can't. I live with this feeling all the time, that there is nothing that can be done because we know not what we do, that we are too deeply asleep.

This frustrates me deeply and it tempts me to take up the ring of power to right what I see as wrong, what I know in my being is unjust. It causes me to feel righteous madness.

This is how crazy I am. I remember when the Serbs threatened a killing spree and these were my actually thoughts. If the Serbs attack in Bosnia 250,000 people will die. If I had the ring of power this is what I would have told them:

You are about to embark on a campaign that will kill 250,000 people. Go ahead and make your move, but if you do I will bomb your country until 250,000 are dead. We will have the same level of death, but it will be your rather than theirs. Make your choice. If the world followed that plan universally, I believe the days genocide would have ended at 250,000 dead. Genocide is something that folk feel they can pull off without consequence. This kind of madness I believe first seized me the day as a child I say the Day the Earth Stood Still. The irony to me was that the actual death toll was 250,000 as I recall.

If I were Obama you can bet your ass I would have been an accounting or I would be dead. I sometimes wonder if, when you become president, some part of the government reminds you that you have a family to which bad things might happen.

Anyway, in this and many other areas, Obama is a profound disappointment to me.

Anyway, I believe the rage against injustice burns strong in you and me, and we are drowning in our tears.

Maybe there's a God who straightens such things out in the next life. My friend LunarRay, I believe,takes comfort in that. All I see is the cold benign indifference of the Universe.

My life is in a Haiku written by a practitioner of Zen on the death of his son:

This little tear drop world

It may be only a tear drop

And yet, and yet
You don't give yourself the significance you deserve, Moonbeam, but dilute yourself with other peoples ideas.

You, are the most special thing in the world.

-John
 

OverVolt

Lifer
Aug 31, 2002
14,278
89
91
I know for a fact my amygdala is overactive. Its also why I have a very good memory. There are pros and cons to the amygdala. I'm also good under pressure, taking tests, etc. etc. But there comes a point where too much arousal can actually decrease your performance so I'm always walking that line.

I consider people who aren't reactive as fairly braindead. Fear is what you make of it. There can be an old man wandering down some train tracks barely aware of the danger of a train coming, so if thats how a liberal brain works its not exactly something to be proud about.
 
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Londo_Jowo

Lifer
Jan 31, 2010
17,303
158
106
londojowo.hypermart.net
It doesn't work that way. Because you, unlike me, are not aware of your own self hate, you have no idea you project that feeling out on the world and feel that others are competing with you on the matter of superiority. I, on the other hand, recognize such feelings as my own mental illness and pay no attention to them. In short your inability to recognize your inner condition automatically makes me superior. In short again, we are both infected with feelings of inferiority but you believe yours is true and I know it was because we were forced to believe in lies. The difference between you and me then is a state of awareness about a simple truth you don't want to see and I had to face. I used to be as ignorant as you are

Blah, blah, blah....self hate.....I faced my fears/self and now I'm better. Nope, you're still a defective sick person.
 

row

Senior member
May 28, 2013
314
0
71
groups of animals have two basic strategies that they can adopt to ensure species survival. in an environment where resources are abundant, the classic example is rabbits living in a huge meadow, the correct approach for the species to adopt is r. r-selected populations demonstrate certain characteristics:

the r-strategy entails 5 main psychological traits. each trait is designed to help an organism out-compete peers in the r-selected environment of free resource availability. the psychology exhibits a psychological aversion to both, competition with peers and the competitive environment. it also exhibits a tolerance for, or embrace of, promiscuity, low-investment single parenting, and early onset sexual behavior among offspring. It will also tend to not exhibit any group-centric urges, such as loyalty to in-group or hostility to out-group.

contrast this with a k population, one that lives in a highly competitive environment with scarce resources, think wolves on the tundra:

the k-strategy entails an embrace of 5 opposite psychological traits. k-selection favors an aggressive embrace of competition and the competitive environment, where some individuals succeed and others fail, based upon their inherent abilities and merits. it tends to reject promiscuity in favor of sexual selectivity and monogamy, and it will strongly favor high-investment, two-parent offspring-rearing. the k-strategy also favors delaying sexual activity among offspring until later in life, when maximally fit. finally, in it's most evolved form, k-selection will tend to imbue individuals with a fierce loyalty to their in-group, to facilitate success in group competitions. danger, conflict and shortage are the evolutionary origins of the pack mentality, and they are ever present in the k-selected environment.

what is important to note is that neither of these survival strategies is wrong. a k selected species would be at an extreme disadvantage in an r environment. while a lone wolf was carefully selecting it's mate and carefully raising it's one supremely fit offspring, its competing r species would be pumping out offspring by the dozens. the reverse is true as well. in an environment of scarce resources rabbits would soon starve en mass, while the capable few wolves would thrive. as i said, neither strategy is wrong, they're just solutions to different realities.

of these five traits, (competition aversion, promiscuity, single parenting, early onset sexuality, and aversion to group-centrism/ethnocentrism), political leftists exhibit a tolerance of, or an embrace of, all five. indeed, as will be shown, these five urges explain the entire liberal platform of issue positions. liberalism seeks to quash competitions between men (from capitalism, to war, to citizens killing criminal attackers with privately owned firearms). liberalism also adopts a lax attitude towards rampant promiscuity if it is not actively embracing it. liberals tend to support single parenting... liberalism exhibits a tolerance for, or an embrace of, ever earlier sexual education for children as well as an even more sexualized media environment, to which children are exposed. liberals tend to reject ethnocentrism, and view any tendency towards a pack mentality as an odd and foolish evolutionary throwback.
clearly, conservatives favor competition, from capitalism, to war, to armed citizens fighting off criminals with personally owned firearms. conservatives accept that such competitions will produce disparate outcomes which will be based on inherent ability and effort. conservatives favor a culture of monogamy over promiscuity, and they tend to desire a culture which favors high-investment, two-parent child-rearing.... conservatives also tend to want to see children protected from sexually stimulating themes or sexual education until later in life, so they will be likely to delay the onset of sexual activity until they are mature. of course, conservatives have always viewed liberals as exhibiting diminished loyalty to their nation and it's people, because to a conservative, patriotism, and a support for "one's own," is a vital moral quality in peers, and it's expression can never be too exaggerated.

here's the depressing thing. human beings are naturally k selected. competition is the one constant in human history, and we are designed to thrive in a competitive environment. indeed, look at all the great civilizations throughout history. all of them rose to greatness by out competing other civilizations or hostile environments. the depressing part is that the seeds of their downfall were sown by their success, because as they grew great, they created a society of abundance, which demands an r-selected strategy for success. remember, neither strategy is wrong, they are just different answers to different environments. a successful k-selected society invariably creates a world where r becomes the appropriate strategy, and thus it collapses, and the cycle begins anew. we are conservatives because we recognize that however nice things are in the US, however rich we are, however free, the trials and tribulations that we had to surmount to achieve the success are still out there, and they still demand the same response. progressives look at the prosperity of America and assume that it was ever thus and ever will be thus, and so they adopt an r selected lifestyle. sadly, i don't know how to break this cycle, or even if it can be broken, another conservative realization is that human nature doesn't change. i do know one thing, however. if this great and glorious American society does come crashing down, there is another, even older, even more primitive term that will describe to our r-selected brethren.

prey.
 
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Vic

Elite Member
Jun 12, 2001
50,422
14,337
136
groups of animals have two basic strategies that they can adopt to ensure species survival. in an environment where resources are abundant, the classic example is rabbits living in a huge meadow, the correct approach for the species to adopt is r. r-selected populations demonstrate certain characteristics:

the r-strategy entails 5 main psychological traits. each trait is designed to help an organism out-compete peers in the r-selected environment of free resource availability. the psychology exhibits a psychological aversion to both, competition with peers and the competitive environment. it also exhibits a tolerance for, or embrace of, promiscuity, low-investment single parenting, and early onset sexual behavior among offspring. It will also tend to not exhibit any group-centric urges, such as loyalty to in-group or hostility to out-group.

contrast this with a k population, one that lives in a highly competitive environment with scarce resources, think wolves on the tundra:

the k-strategy entails an embrace of 5 opposite psychological traits. k-selection favors an aggressive embrace of competition and the competitive environment, where some individuals succeed and others fail, based upon their inherent abilities and merits. it tends to reject promiscuity in favor of sexual selectivity and monogamy, and it will strongly favor high-investment, two-parent offspring-rearing. the k-strategy also favors delaying sexual activity among offspring until later in life, when maximally fit. finally, in it's most evolved form, k-selection will tend to imbue individuals with a fierce loyalty to their in-group, to facilitate success in group competitions. danger, conflict and shortage are the evolutionary origins of the pack mentality, and they are ever present in the k-selected environment.

what is important to note is that neither of these survival strategies is wrong. a k selected species would be at an extreme disadvantage in an r environment. while a lone wolf was carefully selecting it's mate and carefully raising it's one supremely fit offspring, its competing r species would be pumping out offspring by the dozens. the reverse is true as well. in an environment of scarce resources rabbits would soon starve en mass, while the capable few wolves would thrive. as i said, neither strategy is wrong, they're just solutions to different realities.

of these five traits, (competition aversion, promiscuity, single parenting, early onset sexuality, and aversion to group-centrism/ethnocentrism), political leftists exhibit a tolerance of, or an embrace of, all five. indeed, as will be shown, these five urges explain the entire liberal platform of issue positions. liberalism seeks to quash competitions between men (from capitalism, to war, to citizens killing criminal attackers with privately owned firearms). liberalism also adopts a lax attitude towards rampant promiscuity if it is not actively embracing it. liberals tend to support single parenting... liberalism exhibits a tolerance for, or an embrace of, ever earlier sexual education for children as well as an even more sexualized media environment, to which children are exposed. liberals tend to reject ethnocentrism, and view any tendency towards a pack mentality as an odd and foolish evolutionary throwback.
clearly, conservatives favor competition, from capitalism, to war, to armed citizens fighting off criminals with personally owned firearms. conservatives accept that such competitions will produce disparate outcomes which will be based on inherent ability and effort. conservatives favor a culture of monogamy over promiscuity, and they tend to desire a culture which favors high-investment, two-parent child-rearing.... conservatives also tend to want to see children protected from sexually stimulating themes or sexual education until later in life, so they will be likely to delay the onset of sexual activity until they are mature. of course, conservatives have always viewed liberals as exhibiting diminished loyalty to their nation and it's people, because to a conservative, patriotism, and a support for "one's own," is a vital moral quality in peers, and it's expression can never be too exaggerated.

here's the depressing thing. human beings are naturally k selected. competition is the one constant in human history, and we are designed to thrive in a competitive environment. indeed, look at all the great civilizations throughout history. all of them rose to greatness by out competing other civilizations or hostile environments. the depressing part is that the seeds of their downfall were sown by their success, because as they grew great, they created a society of abundance, which demands an r-selected strategy for success. remember, neither strategy is wrong, they are just different answers to different environments. a successful k-selected society invariably creates a world where r becomes the appropriate strategy, and thus it collapses, and the cycle begins anew. we are conservatives because we recognize that however nice things are in the US, however rich we are, however free, the trials and tribulations that we had to surmount to achieve the success are still out there, and they still demand the same response. progressives look at the prosperity of America and assume that it was ever thus and ever will be thus, and so they adopt an r selected lifestyle. sadly, i don't know how to break this cycle, or even if it can be broken, another conservative realization is that human nature doesn't change. i do know one thing, however. if this great and glorious American society does come crashing down, there is another, even older, even more primitive term that will describe to our r-selected brethren.

prey.

Interesting. An excellent example of how fear - based thinking can justify racism and sociopathy even when the underlying scientific principles are otherwise rationally understood (although r-k is somewhat dated theory).

Question: besides disease and natural disasters, what has been the most destructive force affecting humanity throughout history? War, of course. Is it genuinely beneficial for humanity to keep destroying itself and its resources for the sake of genetic evolution when our best path to advancement lies with technology?

Anyway, you make many gross assumptions and inaccuracies. The people in '19 kids and counting' aren't liberals. Those professional couples who have 1 or 2 kids later in life usually aren't conservatives.
You might want to reconsider your position based on the observable facts and not on ideology. What people say they believe and what they actually do are usually not the same. But it is actions, not beliefs, that will determine who will be predator or prey.
 

DAPUNISHER

Super Moderator CPU Forum Mod and Elite Member
Super Moderator
Aug 22, 2001
32,336
33,230
146
The electrician that loses his fear of electricity usually ends up badly injured or dead.
Hey Rocky, watch me pull stats out of my hat.

Having worked with the iebw before, my anecdotal evidence is that you are spouting nonsense.

There is the whole rational fear v irrational fear issue hear as well. Many here conflate the two far too often.
 

OverVolt

Lifer
Aug 31, 2002
14,278
89
91
Hey Rocky, watch me pull stats out of my hat.

Having worked with the iebw before, my anecdotal evidence is that you are spouting nonsense.

There is the whole rational fear v irrational fear issue hear as well. Many here conflate the two far too often.

The OP's article was about the amygdala among other things.
 

bradley

Diamond Member
Jan 9, 2000
3,671
2
81
Without ever having a single thought, the human body is innately moderate.

For instance, human blood is balanced between acid and alkaline with a slightly sweet pH of 7.35.... just as the human brain should have a balance of fear/faith for proper operation.

Everything in the world has a yin and yang. The key to life is finding balance between the two.

Don't be a fool and ever let any extremist pull you away from moderation and basic simple common sense - speaking about nut shells.

The fucking end.
 
Last edited:
Nov 25, 2013
32,083
11,718
136
groups of animals have two basic strategies that they can adopt to ensure species survival. in an environment where resources are abundant, the classic example is rabbits living in a huge meadow, the correct approach for the species to adopt is r. r-selected populations demonstrate certain characteristics:

the r-strategy entails 5 main psychological traits. each trait is designed to help an organism out-compete peers in the r-selected environment of free resource availability. the psychology exhibits a psychological aversion to both, competition with peers and the competitive environment. it also exhibits a tolerance for, or embrace of, promiscuity, low-investment single parenting, and early onset sexual behavior among offspring. It will also tend to not exhibit any group-centric urges, such as loyalty to in-group or hostility to out-group.

contrast this with a k population, one that lives in a highly competitive environment with scarce resources, think wolves on the tundra:

the k-strategy entails an embrace of 5 opposite psychological traits. k-selection favors an aggressive embrace of competition and the competitive environment, where some individuals succeed and others fail, based upon their inherent abilities and merits. it tends to reject promiscuity in favor of sexual selectivity and monogamy, and it will strongly favor high-investment, two-parent offspring-rearing. the k-strategy also favors delaying sexual activity among offspring until later in life, when maximally fit. finally, in it's most evolved form, k-selection will tend to imbue individuals with a fierce loyalty to their in-group, to facilitate success in group competitions. danger, conflict and shortage are the evolutionary origins of the pack mentality, and they are ever present in the k-selected environment.

what is important to note is that neither of these survival strategies is wrong. a k selected species would be at an extreme disadvantage in an r environment. while a lone wolf was carefully selecting it's mate and carefully raising it's one supremely fit offspring, its competing r species would be pumping out offspring by the dozens. the reverse is true as well. in an environment of scarce resources rabbits would soon starve en mass, while the capable few wolves would thrive. as i said, neither strategy is wrong, they're just solutions to different realities.

of these five traits, (competition aversion, promiscuity, single parenting, early onset sexuality, and aversion to group-centrism/ethnocentrism), political leftists exhibit a tolerance of, or an embrace of, all five. indeed, as will be shown, these five urges explain the entire liberal platform of issue positions. liberalism seeks to quash competitions between men (from capitalism, to war, to citizens killing criminal attackers with privately owned firearms). liberalism also adopts a lax attitude towards rampant promiscuity if it is not actively embracing it. liberals tend to support single parenting... liberalism exhibits a tolerance for, or an embrace of, ever earlier sexual education for children as well as an even more sexualized media environment, to which children are exposed. liberals tend to reject ethnocentrism, and view any tendency towards a pack mentality as an odd and foolish evolutionary throwback.
clearly, conservatives favor competition, from capitalism, to war, to armed citizens fighting off criminals with personally owned firearms. conservatives accept that such competitions will produce disparate outcomes which will be based on inherent ability and effort. conservatives favor a culture of monogamy over promiscuity, and they tend to desire a culture which favors high-investment, two-parent child-rearing.... conservatives also tend to want to see children protected from sexually stimulating themes or sexual education until later in life, so they will be likely to delay the onset of sexual activity until they are mature. of course, conservatives have always viewed liberals as exhibiting diminished loyalty to their nation and it's people, because to a conservative, patriotism, and a support for "one's own," is a vital moral quality in peers, and it's expression can never be too exaggerated.

here's the depressing thing. human beings are naturally k selected. competition is the one constant in human history, and we are designed to thrive in a competitive environment. indeed, look at all the great civilizations throughout history. all of them rose to greatness by out competing other civilizations or hostile environments. the depressing part is that the seeds of their downfall were sown by their success, because as they grew great, they created a society of abundance, which demands an r-selected strategy for success. remember, neither strategy is wrong, they are just different answers to different environments. a successful k-selected society invariably creates a world where r becomes the appropriate strategy, and thus it collapses, and the cycle begins anew. we are conservatives because we recognize that however nice things are in the US, however rich we are, however free, the trials and tribulations that we had to surmount to achieve the success are still out there, and they still demand the same response. progressives look at the prosperity of America and assume that it was ever thus and ever will be thus, and so they adopt an r selected lifestyle. sadly, i don't know how to break this cycle, or even if it can be broken, another conservative realization is that human nature doesn't change. i do know one thing, however. if this great and glorious American society does come crashing down, there is another, even older, even more primitive term that will describe to our r-selected brethren.

prey.

2nd year essay?