First one? Really? (Politics)

by xeno6696 , Sonoran Desert, Sunday, June 14, 2009, 07:24 (5640 days ago) @ David Turell
edited by unknown, Sunday, June 14, 2009, 07:37

It is true that we diverged--we are undeniably different--but denying that we share behaviors with our cousins would strike me as absurd. &#13;&#10;> &#13;&#10;> Yes, we share behaviors, but not on an inherited basis, A la&apos; E.O. Wilson.&#13;&#10;<&#13;&#10;The entire field of behavioral genetics begs to differ. You accept evolution, but deny we inherited anything? - This is an interesting turnabout! You suggest the behaviors we share are shared purely by chance? If evolution teaches us anything it teaches us that non-deleterious behaviors will be conserved. They recently found a &quot;warrior&quot; gene that is prevalent more frequently in gang members than the rest of the population funny study methodology actually... - http://news.brown.edu/pressreleases/2009/01/hotsauce - I&apos;m going to push you further on this point... - On the anatomic level we share how much in brain anatomy to other apes? Other creatures at large? &#13;&#10;Food seeking behavior? Fight or flight response? (WWII, D-day soldiers crapped themselves, has been a common fear response going back as far back as recorded history.) - &#13;&#10;> &#13;&#10;> > Breakdown of human social structure is invariably linked to economic disparity. Economic disparity applies the same to both animal worlds and our own. &#13;&#10;> &#13;&#10;> We have enormous economic disparity in this country, but we have not broken down so far because for most Americans the &apos;American Dream&apos; is still possible. When it is no longer considered &apos;posible&apos; by a majority of Americans there will be a breakdown.&#13;&#10;<&#13;&#10;This is true--there must be hope in order to maintain order. America is unique in that several of its myths propagate this hope--Horatio Alger specifically. - But this doesn&apos;t always hold. Social structures don&apos;t have to *completely* fail for us to observe animalism in action. - It is a constant battle for humans to *not* act as our ancestors. Maybe I&apos;m more pessimistic than you. (Very probably.) I&apos;m a pharmacy tech in the largest hospital in Omaha, but my weekends are spent in the ER. We&apos;re not South LA, or Cook County in Chicago... but the animalistic way we destroy each other can be seen anywhere. And this violence never seems to strike in the rich part of town. This erodes your argument... - The prisons are filled with those from the low-income bracket. It is obvious that economic disparity is the root of this problem. Most crimes are committed exactly when people lose hope. Hope is a high-level brain function, and when it fails--by your own admission we share behaviors, though in this case--by chance. - This book you suggest is teetering on the top of the list. An author to be nearly insane to think of humans as something separate from or above animals... no offense. I haven&apos;t heard that argument since Aristotle or Aquinas.