DU POLL - Do you think the RW functions as they do because it's hard-coded in their brains?

[RKP5637]

There have been some studies that show those with very conservative unshakable thought patterns well might do so because their brains are hard-wired that way.

I think there is a lot of truth in these studies, for those that are just hopeless, that cling to their opinions despite mountains of information to the contrary of what they think.

I'm curious what DU thinks.

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	I agree, it's hard-coded in their brains.
	3 (60%)
	I disagee, it's NOT hard-coded in their brains.
	2 (40%)
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[3waygeek]

1. Right-wingers have brains?

News to me.

[Mojorabbit]

2. both. I say this because I have sibs raised the same way as I who have sucked down the koolaid. nt

[agent46]

3. It's not hard coded

They are on a runaway ideological train. Authoritarian followers with no one in charge.

[meanit]

4. They are hard wired

to be dirty SOBs. Conservatism is just the excuse for them to act out. IMO, they know exactly what they are doing.

[ailsagirl]

5. They're also sadists

IMO

It's as if they enjoy knowing they're hurting people.

It's really w-e-i-r-d.

[RKP5637]

8. I've often thought the same. it seems they rally around everything/anything

that can hurt people. It is, it's sadistic, sociopathic antisocial behavior. Often i think about how really w-e-i-r-d it all really is.

They seem to what a theocratic dystopia run by an ultra-authoritarian oligarchy government wherein the majority of the citizens live in squalor. I just can't see what else they want.

[siligut]

9. It makes them feel superior

I think if you looked deep enough and under the bravado instilled by the people who are using them, you would find some very insecure people.

[ailsagirl]

11. They're the scum of the earth

It sounds crazy but it's as if we are witnessing the battle between Good and Evil

[RKP5637]

13. Yep, that's really the bottom line, "the battle between Good and Evil" n/t

[siligut]

14. Power and money can make some people pretty evil

It irritates me that this scum can't just play among themselves and let us have our society.

[ailsagirl]

16. I know. I wish they'd just go away

How much longer are we going to allow their psychotic (or sociopathic?) behavior ruin our country? I find it absolutely chilling that they've gone this far and I see no evidence that they'll ever retreat.

[IDemo]

6. Brains?...

[BlueCaliDem]

7. No doubt about it. They were like this *before* Fox"News" came along. eom

[RKP5637]

10. Yep, I think Fox"News" and other disinformation hate sources posing

as legitimate information sources gave them a rally point for their hatred, much as some religion does too. And they already had a predisposition for hatred and bizarre thought patterns.

[cynatnite]

12. Conservatives without Conscience by John Dean...

Still as relevant today as it was when it was written.

[Marr]

15. Absolutely-- I've read a couple of books on the subject that were not polemics but

real social science and psychology. Authoritarians are apparently a very common personality type that, among other things, has difficulty with logic, is highly prone to employing double standards, and sides with authority and tradition as a matter of reflex.

One study I read (sorry I don't remember where it was) suggested that they're really just more naturally fearful people, as we're all more likely to behave like authoritarians when we're frightened.

[RC]

17. Liberal vs. Conservative

Liberal vs. Conservative: Does the Difference Lie in the Brain?
The differences between liberals and conservatives run wide and deep, and a new study suggests they may even be reflected in the very structure of their brains.
>SNIP<
In the study, led by Ryota Kanai of the University College London, people who identified themselves as liberals generally had a larger anterior cingulate cortex — a comma-shaped region near the front of the brain that is involved in decision-making. By contrast, those who identified as conservatives had larger amygdalas — almond-shaped structures that are linked with emotional learning and the processing of fear.
http://healthland.time.com/2011/04/08/liberal-vs-conservative-does-the-difference-lie-in-the-brain/

Study: Conservatives have larger ‘fear center’ in brain
A study at University College London in the UK has found that conservatives’ brains have larger amygdalas than the brains of liberals. Amygdalas are responsible for fear and other “primitive” emotions. At the same time, conservatives’ brains were also found to have a smaller anterior cingulate — the part of the brain responsible for courage and optimism.

If the study is confirmed, it could give us the first medical explanation for why conservatives tend to be more receptive to threats of terrorism, for example, than liberals. And it may help to explain why conservatives like to plan based on the worst-case scenario, while liberals tend towards rosier outlooks.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/28/conservatives-fear-center-brain/

Diagnosing the Republican Brain
Nevertheless, some of the differences between liberals and conservatives have clear implications for how they respond to evidence in political debates. Take, for instance, their divergence on a core personality measure called Openness to Experience (and the suite of characteristics that go along with it). The evidence here is quite strong: overall, liberals tend to be more open, flexible, curious and nuanced—and conservatives tend to be more closed, fixed and certain in their views.

What's more, since Openness is a core aspect of personality, examining this difference points us toward the study of the political brain. The field is very young, but scientists are already showing that average "liberal" and "conservative" brains differ in suggestive ways. These differences may be related to a large and still unidentified number of "political" genes—although to be sure, genes are only one influence out of many upon our political views. But they appear to be an underrated one.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/03/chris-mooney-republican-brain-science-denial?page=3