Conservative Brains: ARE They Different?

"Do MAGA conservatives’ brains prevent them from changing their minds? Scientists may have proven this in a fascinating study."

Psychological research has previously pointed to the evidence that conservatives and liberals think differently (link). However, I am a case study of being able to change my thinking from very conservative most of my life (just turned 79 years old) to very liberal. It would have been interesting if I had this testing before and after. In any event, the video at the link below is interesting:

Did Science Prove Liberals & Conservatives Have Different Brains?

Antisemitism: It's Not Partisan But, - - -

"Concern about antisemitism in the U.S. has grown following recent rises in deadly assaults, vandalism, and harassment. Public accounts of antisemitism have focused on both the ideological right and left, suggesting a “horseshoe theory” in which the far left and the far right hold a common set of anti-Jewish prejudicial attitudes that distinguish them from the ideological center. However, there is little quantitative research evaluating left-wing versus right-wing antisemitism. We conducted several experiments on an original survey of 3500 U.S. adults, including an oversample of young adults. We oversampled young adults because unlike other forms of prejudice that are more common among older people, antisemitism is theorized to be more common among younger people. Contrary to the expectation of horseshoe theory, the data show the epicenter of antisemitic attitudes is young adults on the far right."

- - -

"Right-wing antisemitism and left-wing antisemitism are not identical. In the far-right mentality, Jews are viewed as people pretending to be white—“a faux-white race that has tainted America”13—or disloyal white people—“the ultimate betrayers of the white race” (Weiss, 2019, 68). American Jews are distinctive in that they are high in socioeconomic status and mostly identify as white, but unlike others with those attributes, they are liberal in their social views and supportive of racial equality and immigration (Smith and Schapiro 2019; Smith 2013). Prior work has argued that American Jewish liberalism is not a coincidence, but in fact, a political manifestation of Jewish identity—the distinct history of Jewish oppression may have led to prioritizing equality and support for marginalized groups (Forman 1998; Brodkin 1998). Conservatives might feel negatively towards Jews if they perceive Jewish religious values to be in direct conflict with their preferred conservative policy stances."

- - -

"Research on left-wing antisemitism suggests some commonalities with antisemitism on the right. As mentioned, populism and anti-capitalism may trigger anti-Jewish tropes and scapegoating on the left just as on the right. The political left—typically sympathetic to oppressed minorities—may see Jews not as an oppressed religious group but instead as oppressors due to stereotypes of Jews’ involvement in capitalism or to solidarity with Palestinians in the Israel/Palestine conflict (Lerner 1992)."

Click on the link below for the results of recent research regarding this "othering" thinking and behavior:

Antisemitic Attitudes Across the Ideological Spectrum

Liberal Consensus: What Has Ruled The USA (In Spite Of Conservatives)

"Heather Cox Richardson, a Boston College history professor and author of the 'Letters From An American,' newsletter, joins Preet to discuss her new book, 'Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America.' They discuss the origins of the terms 'liberal' and 'conservative,' a 1937 anti-FDR manifesto that presaged today’s GOP ideology, and the ways in which the nation might move beyond the chaos of the Trump years."

Click on the link below for a history of the battle with conservatives and how the "Liberal Consensus" is still alive:

Democracy Awakened

What Conservatives Fail To Understand About Government Expenditures

" - - - a change in aggregate expenditures circles through the economy: households buy from firms, firms pay workers and suppliers, workers and suppliers buy goods from other firms, those firms pay their workers and suppliers, and so on. In this way, the original change in aggregate expenditures is actually spent more than once. This is called the expenditure multiplier effect: an initial increase in spending, cycles repeatedly through the economy and has a larger impact than the initial dollar amount spent."

Click on the link below for a basic economic lesson:

The Expenditure Multiplier Effect

Are All Forms Of Persuasion Regarding Dealing With Republicans Futile?

"Today, we take a look at some of the factors driving hyper-partisanship in the US right now along with multiple arguments to not give up on the power of persuasion."

Click on the link below for a podcast presenting the psychology of the Republicans and suggestions for using it to appeal to what is deeply important to them:

The Pillars of Polarization and Persuasion

A Look At The Document The Republicans Love To Hate

"It’s been 174 years since Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote “The Communist Manifesto.” How is it still relevant today and what makes it such a vital guide to understanding present-day struggles? That’s the subject of China Mieville’s latest work, “A Spectre, Haunting: On the Communist Manifesto.” Miéville, a self-proclaimed Marxist and socialist, is a New York Times-bestselling author of fiction and non-fiction. His most recent book offers an analysis of what arguably remains the modern world’s most influential political document. He joins WITHpod to discuss criticisms of “The Manifesto,” the precipitating factors and peculiar nature of the text, how it still profoundly influences contemporary discourse, and more."

Click on the link below for a podcast presenting the good, bad and the ugly of communism:

What ‘The Communist Manifesto’ Means Today

Facts And The Political Spectrum

"MeidasTouch was featured last night on 60 Minutes. MeidasTouch Network host Ben Meiselas reports on the segment and why it shows the problem with the “both sides” media and what we need to change."

Why "both sides are equal" is bullsh1t. The truth is not automatically in the middle!!! FACTS will always be the TRUTH over fiction. Click on the link below for a 15-minute video explaining in-depth why being a "centrist" in politics is not the place to be. If you still have doubts about the difference between progressives and conservatives regarding facts, I invite you to peruse this blog in depth.

Lies without rebuttal do not warrant coverage in the news

Elon Musk is the poster child of the dangerous "balancing" way of looking at voting (link).

Parental Rights And Responsibilities

There is a great deal of discussion, and disagreement, regarding parental rights and responsibilities in the political environment of the USA presently. While most legal sources agree that the parents are the prime sources of proper nurturing and protection of the child, they also agree that outside resources are necessary to aid in achieving the goal of a happy, healthy, and well-educated child. After all, the parent is not the "owner" of the child (and neither is the state). 

With that said, what happens when parents do not meet their responsibilities in child-rearing? There is little societal disagreement regarding not tolerating physical (exception: corporal punishment) or emotional abuse, and/or failure to provide food, clothing, and shelter. However, the areas of health and education can present situations ripe for disagreement, especially if one's ideology is based on claims unsupported by evidence:

• Health: circumcision? vaccinations? birth-control? hormone replacement therapy? gender reassignment surgery? abortion? alternatives to medicine?
• Education: religious indoctrination? secular morality? evolution, and other sciences? history (of racism, inequality,  colonialism, genocide, wars, greed, authoritarianism, individualism, communism, socialism, democracy, republicanism, tribalism, capitalism)?

What to do with all of this?

Jonathan Haidt: More Whataboutism

I have posted many times about whataboutism regarding liberals and conservatives (link). Jonathan Haidt's recent media blitz discussing his recent Atlantic article entitled, "Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquing Stupid" is a good representative of this point of view. No reasonable person can deny the bad actions of some on the political left regarding the intolerance of free speech. However, it is unreasonable to compare the relatively small fringe on the left doing such with the massive movement by conservatives to end democracy in the USA.

This link will give one more insight into his blind spot.

Conservatism: The Truth

The following are summaries from articles analyzing the differences between conservatism and progressivism, and the effects of each. After reading them, and the links, if you are a conservative/Republican, do you still feel comfortable in your political ideology?

Conservatism is the domination of society by an aristocracy. Conservatism is incompatible with democracy, prosperity, and civilization in general. It is a destructive system of inequality and prejudice that is founded on deception and has no place in the modern world. (link)

People living in more liberal countries are happier on average than those in less liberal countries, but individually, conservatives are happier than liberals no matter where they live, according to a study of people in 16 Western European countries. Liberal governments tend to do more to shield citizens against certain hardships, such as unemployment and poverty, which can make people feel happier overall. On the other hand, conservatives rate their well-being higher than liberals because conservatives more readily support and rationalize the status quo, thus, believing that socioeconomic hardships are a result of individual shortcomings. (link)

On average, Democratic presidents grew the economy 4.4% each year versus 2.5% for Republicans. (link)

Economic growth and stock market performance are better under progressive governments. (link)

Democrats and low-income Republicans think that the economy is hurting the middle class. (link)

Also: video from Robert Reich on How Democrats Clean Up the Messes Left by Republicans (link)

Liberal(ism)

There is a misunderstanding of the term "Liberal(ism)", especially in the minds of conservatives. Following is an attempt to clarify and de-stigmatize it:

Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on liberty, consent of the governed, and equality before the law.^[1][2][3] Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but they generally support limited government, individual rights (including civil rights and human rights), capitalism (free markets), democracy, secularism, gender equality, racial equality, internationalism, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of religion.^{[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]} Yellow is the political colour most commonly associated with liberalism.^[11][12][13]

Liberalism became a distinct movement in the Age of Enlightenment, when it became popular among Western philosophers and economists. Liberalism sought to replace the norms of hereditary privilege, state religion, absolute monarchy, the divine right of kings and traditional conservatism with representative democracy and the rule of law. Liberals also ended mercantilist policies, royal monopolies and other barriers to trade, instead promoting free markets.^[14] Philosopher John Locke is often credited with founding liberalism as a distinct tradition, based on the social contract, arguing that each man has a natural right to life, liberty and property and governments must not violate these rights.^[15] While the British liberal tradition has emphasized expanding democracy, French liberalism has emphasized rejecting authoritarianism and is linked to nation-building.^[16]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism

Can Political Common Ground Be Achieved?

"The goal of the Hauenstein Center’s Common Ground Initiative is not to turn Republicans into Democrats or Democrats into Republicans. It is not to provide mere entertainment by reducing politics to cable-TV-style shouting matches over the issue de jour. Rather, our purpose is to foster an environment where progressives and conservatives can share the same stage, hear each other out, and possibly discover common ground. The history, philosophy, and culture of these two strong traditions lead them to clash. In spite of their opposition to one another, at other times–surprisingly–they make common cause and have a rollicking good conversation to get there. The historic reality of America is that We the People have worked together and found common ground around important issues at critical historical moments. When that happens, we all benefit as members of the same American community.

"We could sum up by paraphrasing Winston Churchill: Seeking common ground is the worst way a self-governing people can conduct their public affairs–until all the other ways have been tried and found wanting."

Progressives & Conservatives: Is There Common Ground?

(Credit: ELLEN WEINSTEIN)

Can Our Polarized Politics Be Changed?

In my lifetime of 73 years, I have never experienced as much political polarization that the USA has now. As many people who know me, I am not on the "far left" politically, even though I consider myself a progressive politically. Thus, I have disagreed with those on the left who essentially say, "To hell" with the conservatives and the Bernie wing of the Democrats should just get active and overwhelm the Republicans.  The last time THAT was tried was in 1972 with the Democratic candidate George McGovern. How did that work out?

The following shows that there really is a Third Way:

Who says progressives and conservatives can’t compromise?

(Quartz)

The Psychological Differences Between Liberals And Conservatives

Whether you are a liberal or conservative, we all know it is difficult to persuade a liberal to become more conservative and vise versa. Brain function research can explain at least some of the resistance, and also suggest ways of persuading conservatives to adopt more liberal views. Perhaps liberals can keep these factors in mind when interacting with conservatives. Just talking about science-based thinking usually is not enough.

These key psychological differences can determine whether you're liberal or conservative

(Patheos)

The Difference In Thinking: Theists Vs Atheists; Conservatives Vs Progressives

 Are you primarily a System 1 or System 2 Thinker?

There has been a great deal of analysis and speculation regarding why and how people are either theists or atheists. The following article sheds some light on the subject.

People who are more disposed to analytical thinking are less inclined to believe in a deity.

(Comment: a full reading of this blog supports the reality that there probably is not an interventionist deity.)

Now, let's extrapolate into the world of politics. It is well-known that conservatives are much more likely to take religion seriously. With that assumed, what are the differences between liberals and conservatives in their worldviews?

These key psychological differences can determine whether you're liberal or conservative:

* Being scared can make you more conservative. 
* On the other hand, feeling safe and endowed with strength might make you lean a little more liberal than you otherwise would.
* Liberals are less squeamish about looking at yucky stuff like vomit, feces, and blood.

* Conservatives tend to display more ordered thinking patterns, whereas liberals have more "aha" moments.

* Liberals tend to follow the wandering gaze of others more often, while conservative eyes stay more focused on the original subject they're looking at.

*  Holding conservative views seems to make people more resistant to change and help them explain inequality.

* Liberal and conservative tastes in music and art are different, too.

* Liberals are more likely to describe themselves as compassionate and optimistic, while conservatives are more likely to say they're people of honor and religion.

* Conservatives believe they have more self-control.

* Liberals and conservatives extend feelings of compassion to different people.

* Politically charged issues may not be as important as personality when it comes to who you vote for, though. Research on Trump supporters suggests they have more in common with Trump's personal and professional values than his political leanings.

* New research from the United Kingdom backs up the idea that our personalities play a big role in determining who we vote for. A study found that voters who were aggressive, angry kids were more likely to distrust the government and lean liberal as adults.

 - - -

After reading the links above, I hope you can see why:

Conservatives tend to be nationalists, Progressives tend to be globalists.

Conservatives care less about economic inequality, and the plight of the working poor and the homeless. (Link) 

Conservatives tend to support unregulated capitalism, Progressives tend to support more regulation of capitalism.

Conservatives tend to be magical thinkers and Progressives tend to be science-based thinkers.

The Republican party was hijacked by the fundamentalist religious (Link) and the xenophobic, racist alt-right. Ironically, the "Family Values" party is far from such. (Link)

A challenge if you disagree with the above: name one social movement in support of civil/human rights that was initiated and fought for by a conservative political faction anywhere in the modern world. Of course, as a progressive, I hold that the progress of civil/human rights over the centuries is a positive.

Is The US Constitution A "Living" Document?

Conservatives like to criticize progressives for viewing the US Constitution as a "living" document that can change with the needs for society. Then, why not accept that the US cannot establish religion?

The Living Constitution 

(123RF.com)

 

A Challenge To Steven Pinker's Ideas Regarding The Progress Of Humanity

Steven Pinker is known for his historical account of the progress of humanity and well-being.  However, in this lengthy essay, Jeremy Lent delves into the many opinions of Pinker and gives the "Progressive" point of view. Sometimes we assume causation when all we really are looking at is correlation.

Steven Pinker’s Ideas About Progress Are Fatally Flawed

 

 

The Truth About And The Value Of Liberalism

"This 'evil socialist plot' called 'liberalism' gave us Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the minimum wage, student loan programs, equal voting rights (including women’s suffrage), consumer protection, fair housing laws, child labor laws, environmental protection, food and drug safety laws, anti-trust laws, anti-discrimination laws, disability benefits, workplace safety, the SEC, the NLRB, and so many other protections, safety nets, disclosure laws, protections of civil rights, etc., they are far too numerous to list here. 

"When you buy into that canard about the evils of “Big Government,” and the plague of “high taxes” aimed at turning your money over to parasites and freeloaders, you advance the narrow, selfish interests of oligarchs (an oligarch is a person of great wealth and power who controls society, usually for the exclusive benefit of themself and their cronies)."

~Jay Feldman

(Wikimedia Commons)

Ayaan Hirsi Ali And The Political Left

My last post essentially was a criticism of someone who I respect and admire, Sam Harris. Although we disagree on the question of the influence of genetics on IQ, we do agree on most topics, including this one.

Sam Harris VS Ezra Klein Regarding Genetics & IQ

One of my favorite podcasts is Sam Harris' Waking Up.  I have known for years that he is controversial for some of his conservative views. But, he really is difficult to pin down politically. That said, there is a major firestorm going on after *he and Ezra Klein debated recently. The topic of controversy was regarding the role of genetics in IQ: Harris supports the significant influence of genetics and Klein does not.  What is the truth?

Here are several links presenting research in this area: link; link; link; link; link.  In studying the topic, I have come to the conclusion that, if genetics do play a role, it is minor compared to the role of history and environment/culture in which humans evolved.  Thus, I do not accept Sam Harris' view of the importance of genetics and IQ.

(*The debate was over the writings of Charles Murray and Richard J. Herrnstein in their book The Bell Curve.  This article challenges the sources of its data, and this link to Wikipedia presents more criticism of the book and its findings.)