Groups > Atheists and agnostics

Thank you Human bean. I read an alarming article today in the Alabama Educators Journal. They referenced two or three studies that compared U.S. childrens grasp of math, science, geography, etc with that of other industrialized nations. After the 5th grade U.S. children fall rapidly to near last place. Curiosity atrophies quickly. Why bother questioning a superstition if you don't care where Madagascar is, or how to calculate the most cost effective height and width of a gable vent that must pass a given cubic feet of air per minute? I used to think this phenomena only affected people once they graduated from High School or College, now it's happening when they leave the 6th grade!

Jeff Foxworthy was funny until I realized that an unsophisticated asthetic seems to correlate with unsophisticated thinking too.

Most of the aboriginal people I've come in contact with share two common beliefs:

1. They are the 'real' people. They were made first. All others came later.

2. They have no religion as we would define it. All of their practices and customs have 'religious' origins. Whether it's lighting a fire, killing an animal, birthing a child, or building a house -it's all done according to traditions related to a spirit, god, demon, etc.

Primitive societies are more concerned with the here and now of day to day life, not salvation or eternity. Some do go as far as mutilating their enemies bodies so that their 'spirits' cannot attack them, here or in the afterlife.

Genetics is of course a factor in the development of human brain and thought process but most brain researchers are attributing more and more of who we are (well over 50%) with our environment and the most critical environment being the home/parental environment as the development of the brain in those early years is so dependent upon that environment. But home/parents continue to greatly influence the development of the older child as well. From there the environmental influence includes the community and region in which the child is raised. As you said, WS, not everyone becomes an exact carbon copy of their parental choices but the influence is great. There is no doubt in my mind that if I were raised in a Muslim home and in a Muslim community I would most likely carry on the Muslim religious tradition and that I would be surrounded by people who felt as strongly about the "rightness" of their religion as many of the people who surrounded me as a child saw the "rightness" of Christianity.

I agree Jacquin, however, I was thinking about factors other than genetics too - Research shows that the ethical component of brain development doesn't mature until the twenties, so there is probably lots of room for environmental modification at that time. When I think back on my siblings and what we were taught and not taught, I find it interesting that the three of us have widely divergent belief systems when it comes to the "God question". My family decided to join a religious group when I was becoming a teen - I am sure this had a varying impact on each of us, because of our ages as well as other influences from our environments.

Yes I agree that environmental factors continue to influence although to a lesser degree as one gets older depending on the circumstance. A very shocking or traumatic incident can affect someone very seriously as can addiction and such. The development of the brain into the 20's for some is very true and the important thing I guess for us to understand is that hopefully none of us are static or rigid in our learning and development. Lifelong learners is the new buzz phrase. Another benefit of the boomer generation??

Glad you brought something up - "shocking or traumatic incident." I wasn't thinking about that when I first created the thread. People who have been in a house fire are squeamish around candles and extension cords. People who have been shot at (with firearms, etc) will react rapidly upon hearing sharp or loud noises. People who have been shot at alot, come to believe that there are others, hiding or sneaking around, trying to get them. An example would be a veteran who sleeps with a loaded weapon for 10 years after he returns home, or until his wife/gf convinces him to put it under the bed or in a closet.

I've heard the saying "they're aren't any atheists in foxholes." My time in foxholes convinced me that any God watching over us is capricious, unjust, and has a really sick sense of humor. My prayers were that I didn't run out of ammo and that I would remember to breath, relax, and make every shot count.

I have very hard fixed beliefs about human beings in general, and I didn't think that way when I was 18.