There was a time we would never have presumed to label a brain 'the Democrat Brain' or the Republican Brain'. However, since, as evidenced by their voting in lockstep, one might be persuaded that there really is a Republican rigidity of mind that makes them such clones in their zeal Since I tend to analyze details as to how they fit to make a complete picture, I find it somewhat difficult to believe that Republicans of all ages have suddenly all come together to pre4vent contraception when it is likely all of them are either using or have used contraception or their wives or partners have. If not, it would seem the number of children would more equal Santorum's large family.
A recent AlterNet article by Chris Mooney caught my attention by its provocative title:The Strange Conservative Brain: 3 Reasons Republicans Refuse to Accept Reality About Global Warming./. This author has written a new book called The Republican Mind which I have on order and will comment when I have read it. However, this article as a preview is catching my attention. It is not that all people have to believe in global warming, or climate change as the preference for the label has become. The interest is in that a whole group of people with a political label seem to think similarly. What is it about their brains that make some of us rigid and the rest looser (or liberals, as the pejorative label is which has been attached).
Mooney writes: "There's now a staggering amount of research on the psychological and even the physiological traits of people who opt for conservative ideologies. And on average, you see people who are more wedded to certainty, and to having fixed beliefs. You also see people who are more sensitive to fear and threat -- in a way that can be measured in their bodily responses to certain types of stimuli." He goes on , later, with "And here, Fox News is undeniably at the top of the list. There are now a host of studies (video here) showing that Fox News viewers are more misinformed about various aspects of reality, including two such studies about global warming.".
If a fair grade is a C, then Fox viewers are average intelligence? OK, I know I was pushing that one. However, what does it say when people only want to hear that which tells them only that to which they already agree? What does it say about willingness and ability to learn new things?
A recent AlterNet article by Chris Mooney caught my attention by its provocative title:The Strange Conservative Brain: 3 Reasons Republicans Refuse to Accept Reality About Global Warming./. This author has written a new book called The Republican Mind which I have on order and will comment when I have read it. However, this article as a preview is catching my attention. It is not that all people have to believe in global warming, or climate change as the preference for the label has become. The interest is in that a whole group of people with a political label seem to think similarly. What is it about their brains that make some of us rigid and the rest looser (or liberals, as the pejorative label is which has been attached).
Mooney writes: "There's now a staggering amount of research on the psychological and even the physiological traits of people who opt for conservative ideologies. And on average, you see people who are more wedded to certainty, and to having fixed beliefs. You also see people who are more sensitive to fear and threat -- in a way that can be measured in their bodily responses to certain types of stimuli." He goes on , later, with "And here, Fox News is undeniably at the top of the list. There are now a host of studies (video here) showing that Fox News viewers are more misinformed about various aspects of reality, including two such studies about global warming.".
If a fair grade is a C, then Fox viewers are average intelligence? OK, I know I was pushing that one. However, what does it say when people only want to hear that which tells them only that to which they already agree? What does it say about willingness and ability to learn new things?
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