Rationalism versus fundamentalism.

In Stanovich’s book The Robot’s Rebellion, reviewed here, he argues that humans have the capability to become rational rather than dogmatic, emotional, fundamentalist or fanatical. I wish he would have provided additional prescriptions for means to achieve that in a society, but we will have to be satisfied with some speculation rather than hard facts on how to approach that goal.

One of the reasons that I embrace eugenics is because with increased intelligence, humans can overcome their irrational emotional brains—with some effort. The more intelligent and educated a society is on average, the more rational and less emotional that society can become in making collective, and individual decisions, that will lead to better realized results. The most partisan and contentious conflicts all around us today are those that are laden with human emotion—abortion, affirmative action, warfare, labor disputes, etc. We have little conflict in doing medical research, but we become highly partisan when it comes to who will pay for medical treatment.

A recent study, here, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) shows that any individual can react rationally using their frontal cortex or emotionally using the more primitive brain. But what determines to what degree any one person makes decisions or reacts either emotionally or rationally to life’s events?

The main components seem to be intelligence, education, culture, indoctrination, and behavioral traits. Within a nation, children can be taught to think rationally and can be challenged to defend their positions using logic rather than emotion. The smarter they are, the easier it will be to teach them the art of scientific inquiry. Increasing the intelligence of a nation’s people can help promote everything from a more representative democracy to keeping a nation out of war. The war in Iraq is a good example of how emotions override logic, especially when they are whipped into a frenzy by government.

My real concern has to do with the low average intelligence of Semites (excluding Jews), Africans, Southeast Asians, Amerindians, etc. As they flood into the West, will civil debate withstand their inability to reason? In addition to low intelligence, are they fundamentally more religious and doctrinaire? If so, is it due to a genetic predisposition to be more fanatical and less individualistic and open than Westerners?

Since the Enlightenment, Westerners have had extreme difficulty taking a scientific ( as opposed to emotional) stance on sensitive issues. And even hardcore atheists like Richard Dawkins lapse into dogmatic humanism, which is not far removed from religious faith.

I just started reading Daniel Dennett’s Breaking The Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon, 2006. I’ll report back if he has any insight on creating a scientifically oriented society. To date, Dennett has had little to say worth repeating, and he is generally as egalitarian as many religions he condemns for their unwarranted piety.

Posted by Matt Nuenke on Saturday, February 18, 2006 at 12:45 PM in Psychology
Comments (3) | Tell a friend

Comments:

Posted by Andrew on February 19, 2006, 03:24 AM | #

The knowledge Nation is Oxymoron in this context, Instead of having the best Intelligence at work for the benefit of our societies, over the last 30 years we end up with the best of the worst and what they can offer, (More of Nothingness) and then to compound it by making worse Educational standards, and that ever spiraling contribution of further deterioration and out of control- lawless society, (Ethnics).
The main point is: We let it happen, and without confronting the negativity of the Criminal element that rearranged Law Statutes, and the ever basic Psychology being molded upon guilt, there is very little to do but take action now. Regain the initiative and to annihilate the Ideologies that destroy the human mind and Knowledge.
Until then , if ever- we are stuffed , our societies end just as abruptly as those of History: That is a fact we need to grasp hold of or it is gone forever.

Posted by Angela on February 19, 2006, 05:22 AM | #

Dennett admits to being a “social engineer.”

Posted by David Emme on December 28, 2010, 05:29 AM | #

People like you is the reason I remain a fundamentalist.

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