If humans are in fact “Hard-Wired To Drink,” then what’s the point of the endless attempts to identify and label people “alcoholics” and then subject them to various treatments and cures?
I’m asking because to some it matters a great deal (to the control freaks, at least) whether people are born with certain traits or desires as opposed to “choosing” them.
The urge to control others manifests itself in a variety of ways, and telling people they have no control can be just as good a way of controlling them as telling them they do have control.
As to leaving people alone and letting them do what they want, forget it!
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7 responses to “Born that way?”
As b.f.skinner said you can get more with a kind word and a cattle prod then you can with just a kind word! That is why shot down pilots are always admitting to dropping germ warfare bombs on children’s schools because of their “free will.”
Why can’t it be both. Each and everyone of us is predisposed (born with it) to do things that are destructive to ourselves and each other yet we must choose to live our lives in a controlled fashion.
Yes, I want fatty salty food, but I choose to eat healthier.
Yes, I want to sit on the couch all day, but I need exercise.
Yes, I want to have sex with every thing with two legs (but one is ok too if you happen to be missing one), but I choose to be monogamous.
Yes, I want to numb my mind with whatever poison is in available and cheap, but I choose to be sober.
Yes, I want to fulfill my my every desire of the moment, but I choose some self control.
Why can we not be born to be bad yet choose to be better.
ender you do not eat healthier foods for no reason so free will is not involved. It is called stimulus response.
Enders right. Because it is a correct statement.
The problem with things that are difficult to define, it allows scumbags to rationalize their acts along numerous lines, rather than having to explain their one solid line.
If they have numerous irrational justifications for their stance, then whoever opposes them can easily be put into a black and white situation when in reality it’s grey.
Homosexuality was once generally acknowledge as a choice, actually one supported by bill Ayers, as well as the “Bigots.” Homosexuality was also once considered genetic, shared by both sides, but the ones who say, “They were born that way, you can’t judge them.” are happy to judge the ones who say, “they were born that way but aren’t required to ACT that way.” as bigots.
only one side is thoughtful in their squishy rationales for absolute moral authority, the other squishy rationals for absolute moral authority are “Bigots.”
Seems to me the only “Bigots” are the ones who can’t stop calling people who use the same arguments only with the goal of achieving different results, are the ones who don’t have control of the argument.
As to leaving people alone and letting them do what they want, forget it!
Whatever happened to the pursuit of happiness? As far as I can tell it was murdered some decades ago by the moral authoritarians, aided and abetted by public health officials.
The moral authoritarians constantly try to beat us down the path of righteousness by banning or attempting to ban things people like to do. And for those things they haven’t banned, they try to shame and hector people away from that particular activity or product.
The problem with public health officials and health professionals in general is they think maximizing one’s life span is the highest priority for all of us. (We really are a nation of busybodies.) They see people who do things that shorten their lives as victims of a culture (aka freedom) that is unwilling to ban those things that tend to shorten a person’s life. Like the moral authoritarians, they see it their duty to restrict our choices to save us from ourselves. It seems to never occur to them that not everyone shares their goal of maximizing their time on this Earth.
We all understand that we all are going to die sooner or later. Some people are willing to risk losing a few years at the end of their lives in exchange for continuing to enjoy those things that enrich their lives. Even if those activities increase the risk that they will die sooner rather than later. For them, pursuit of happiness trumps life span maximization. But public health officials seem to equate living as long as one can as pursuit of happiness and to think otherwise is irrational to their minds.
We live in a country were the superstitions of the religious have restricted our choices to engage in libations and sensations that they think offends their god. They’ve been joined by the health tyrants who seem to think no one has the right to engage in behaviors that might shave a few years off the end of their lives. Yes, the pursuit of freedom has been murdered by these self-righteous tyrants.
Yes, the pursuit of freedom has been murdered by these self-righteous tyrants.
That last line should read:
Yes, the pursuit of happiness has been murdered by these self-righteous tyrants.
PTSD. You need genetics (for it to be long lasting) and trauma to initiate it.
Which is why alcoholics only make up 10% of the population.