I believe evolutionary psychology is revolutionary. It trashes any number of left and right wing preconceptions. It sends tremors through philosophy and theology departments around the world.

"The fear on the left is that if there is a human nature, we won’t be free to design a better society in the future. They worry that we are marionettes or meat puppets on the ends of strings and that we’re doomed to create a world of oppression and inequality. The reason that doesn’t follow is that human intelligence is an open-ended combinatorial system."

and

"An extreme authoritarian Marxist would sacrifice all freedom to the goal of the equality of outcome. Perhaps an extreme libertarian position would sacrifice any kind of equality of outcome in favor of equality of opportunity. If those are the terms of the debate, science can’t tell us what’s the optimum point along that tradeoff."

The thing about evolutionary psychology is successful dictators and shaman of every kind have an instinctive knowledge of this human nature (read Genesis) and have been pushing our undefended buttons for millennia.

Evolutionary psychology is an infant science but I believe it is a path to knowledge and a way out of being manipulated by the worst among us.

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But some of the truths it reveals about us are not going to be easy to digest or accept. Guaranteed.

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So true.

I find inspiration and a source of optimism, though, when I look back at human history as a series of steps whereby humans found systems that improved their lives.

Poor Stephen Pinker. Erecting straw men in that thread; trying it again here.

Of course, he is right: everyone else takes his simple-minded absolute oppositions absolutely seriously.

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Of course, he is right: everyone else takes his simple-minded absolute oppositions absolutely seriously.

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Why do people think that there are great moral issues at stake, as opposed to empirical issues about how the human mind works?

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From JimmyBrogan:

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Evolutionary psychology is an infant science but I believe it is a path to knowledge and a way out of being manipulated by the worst among us.

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Psychology is not a science but an art.

There is no way to measure empirical issues about the motives of human-kind. Can we agree that the observer may be considerably biased? Can we agree that in investigating identical behavior two "scientists" could come up with two completely different theories with absolutely no way to test or verify either of them?

Pinker:

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Whether humans are mentally indistinguishable or not is an empirical question...

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Dr. Pinker is setting himself up pretty highly by assuming he can empirically find biological motives behind human behavior. The man has a BA and a Phd. That doesn't separate him from the reality that human behavior and the study of it is completely subjective, and that there is no such thing as an impartial observer in art.

While it's obvious to me that there's such a thing as "human nature"-- that it's rather arrogant to ascribe behaviors of other animals like spiders or beavers to "instinct" and yet maintain that humans don't hear (if not necessarily always dance) to the very same tunes.

The difficulty comes not so much in identifying behaviors, but going the extra step in trying to attribute them to environmental conditions that we can no longer empirically observe. Those opposed to the ideas of evolutionary psychology jump to the conclusion that those studying in the field are looking to excuse anti-social behaviors, while proponents, in their eagerness construct what the late Stephen J. Gould refered to as "just so stories" fan the flames of detractors by over reaching.

[ November 06, 2002: Message edited by: Tommy_Paine ]

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Am I only only person on Babble without an arts degree ?

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Am I only only person on Babble without an arts degree ?

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