On 6/7/2010 3:03 AM, harry wrote:
On Jun 6, 7:06�pm, The Daring
wrote:
On 6/6/2010 9:15 AM, Peter wrote:





On 6/6/2010 5:32 AM, aemeijers wrote:

In situations like that, I find it hard to blame the individual. That is
how they were raised/programmed, and few people anywhere ever get beyond
that. Look at KKK in US, early part of 20th century. Things didn't
really change much until a generation after that organization was
largely broken by exposure to bright light and court actions. Even
today, talk to older folks in some areas (especially after a couple of
beers so their guard is down), and the old teachings come shining
through.

I don't accept the fact that people are programmed by their upbringing.
If that were the case, culture would remain constant, and the religious,
political, and other societal tastes and belief of the parents would
always be shared by their children.

Of course people are heavily influenced by their upbringing. But you are
ignoring the fact that many people respond to their upbringing by
questioning the veracity of what they've been told, often deciding that
their parent's values are "old fashioned" and sometimes even rejecting
them outright. However, in order to do that, the individuals have to be
inquisitive - usually a key indicator of intelligence. But, be careful
not to conflate intelligence with education. An unintelligent person is
very adept at rejecting what they are taught if those teachings conflict
with their previous beliefs. Only the intelligent are able to integrate
new knowledge without feeling threatened and make their own choices
based on more data.

The fact that older folks become set in their ways and more commonly
believe as they did when they were in their young adulthood (your KKK
example) is not relevant to the argument. I'll cite the example of
emerging tolerance for homosexuals in the U.S. Almost all surveys show
that the younger the demographic slice, the more tolerant the values. So
much for parental "programming".

A good example of rejecting the old ways may be the young people of Iran.

TDD- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

The problem is you only see what's in front of the camera. not what's
just off screen. Most of these guys have an agenda, they go looking
for "facts" to fit what they want to portray. You need to visit
yourself or failng that, to collect information from various
sources. I collect all my information about America from Aljazeera.
Much more balanced account than Fox TV. ;-) Heh! Heh!

I think I'll go blow up a baby milk factory that looks suspiciously
like a chemical weapons plant.

TDD