Are Republicans genetically different from us?

[Cyrano]

They belong to a political party that thinks it's okay to kidnap children and lock them in cages. A party that thinks there's nothing wrong with letting the poor and their children go hungry and homeless. A party that thinks they're superior to non-white, non-Christian beings. A party that "loves" veterans, yet votes against funding for them. A party that claims to be "Holier than thou," while fucking every "thou" in sight. A party that, ... well, you get the idea.

What's wrong with these people?

They rally behind Trump, one of the most despicable human beings imaginable, as though he were a Saint. They buy his lies as though they were words from the bible. And they have allied themselves with virtually every neo-Nazi group in the country (who call themselves by many different names such as Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, the KKK, and countless others).

What's wrong with these people?

Most people I know are not like them. Most people I know are decent. Most people I know are "normal." Most people I know care about the human species. Most people I know don't hate other people because of their race, religion, heritage, ... Most people I know are not Republicans. Looking at what today's Republican Party is, and what they've been for decades before Trump ripped off their mask, I really have to ask,

What's wrong with these people?

Are Republicans and the rest of us really part of the same species? Like it or not, I guess we are. But I wonder what a Republican would say if asked if they were part of the same species as black people? It really makes you wonder,

What's wrong with these people?

Perhaps, someday, someone will figure out human nature to the point where they can understand characteristics such as sympathy, empathy, hatred of "the Other," and so much more. But until that time comes, all I can ask is,

What's wrong with these people?

[Ferrets are Cool]

1. Bullshit

I will NEVER give them that out. They are just evil. Plain and simple. They CAN avoid being evil IF they wanted to do so.

[Lunabell]

2. Yes

I think most of them are sociopaths and many tread into the realm of psychopathy. And I think that has a genetic component. The lack of empathy and sincere emotions.

[Skittles]

3. the basic belief of conservatism

is that you are superior to others

things need to be YOUR way, other people simply do not matter

[Walleye]

4. I am genuinely shocked by their behavior, often

I guess I live in this little blue sanctuary in New Castle County, Delaware. We think of each other as neighbors and family in this state. We’ve never engaged in cutthroat politics, because we have to live with each other. Our kids go to the same schools. The guy you ware opposing politically might coach your sons basketball team. You just can’t afford to make mortal enemies here. Most people are polite and considerate. Exception is when they get behind the wheel. And I don’t know what’s going on in Sussex County in the southern part of the state

[maxsolomon]

5. Since most of my relatives are Republics,

no, they are not genetically different than us.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

6. Plenty of families have a small contingent of gay members

If you believe people are 'born gay' then you believe the phenomenon has a genetic component, right?

Yet ... why has this gene not 'failed to reproduce itself' ... out of existence?

I absolutely think that far-right people are different genetically, myself.

They have an inherently more ancient, reptilian brain, to put it in simple terms.

[brush]

7. They're the worst of the selfish dickheads from high school...

still being dickheads...and now they have power to impose their evil upon others.

[NanceGreggs]

8. Genetically different, no.

Intellectually different, vary much so.

I've said many, many times before that the smartest thing the Republicans did was to target the easily-manipulated (like evangelicals), the low-info voter, and the low-IQ voter.

They frame everything in terms of appealing to those people - people who respond to couching policies in terms of "Christian principles", people who aren't politically savvy, and people who are just plain stupid.

Just listen to the people who attend Trump rallies. They are invariably ignorant of what's going on in the world. They brandish their mis-spelled signs, and regurgitate whatever nonsensical talking points they've heard on FOX-News - but are never able to articulate anything beyond that.

Ask a Republican voter to explain in detail how they think their party is acting in their best interest, and you'll be met with a blank stare. Ask a Trump-humper what he's done for the country, and they'll tell you that he "made America great again" - but they can't explain how he did so. They can't point to a single position or policy that they believe improved the country.

The thing is that when you are appealing to low-info/low-IQ voters, it is easy to manipulate them into bigotry, hatred, and eventually violence, because they possess neither the information nor the intellect to question why they should engage in such things.

Throw in fear-mongering and a few well-placed Jesus would want it this way tirades, and the stupid will follow you anywhere.

[texasfiddler]

9. I hope so. I don't want any association with them!

[mwooldri]

10. Conservatives are more "me, me, me..."

And liberals are more "we, we, we".

[Hugh_Lebowski]

15. At a 30K foot level, exactly this ...

And these are ancient survival strategies ... although theirs is MUCH more primitive ... cooperation didn't evolve until much later than competition iow.

I also think of it like they are closer to our chimp cousins, and we're closer to our bonobo cousins.

[StarryNite]

11. Conservative and Liberal Brains Might Have Some Real Differences

Conservative and Liberal Brains Might Have Some Real Differences

Scanners try to watch the red-blue divide play out underneath the skull

By Lydia Denworth on October 26, 2020

Excerpt:

In 1968 a debate was held between conservative thinker William F. Buckley, Jr., and liberal writer Gore Vidal. It was hoped that these two members of opposing intellectual elites would show Americans living through tumultuous times that political disagreements could be civilized. That idea did not last for long. Instead Buckley and Vidal descended rapidly into name-calling. Afterward, they sued each other for defamation.

The story of the 1968 debate opens a well-regarded 2013 book called Predisposed, which introduced the general public to the field of political neuroscience. The authors, a trio of political scientists at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Rice University, argued that if the differences between liberals and conservatives seem profound and even unbridgeable, it is because they are rooted in personality characteristics and biological predispositions.

On the whole, the research shows, conservatives desire security, predictability and authority more than liberals do, and liberals are more comfortable with novelty, nuance and complexity. If you had put Buckley and Vidal in a magnetic resonance imaging machine and presented them with identical images, you would likely have seen differences in their brain, especially in the areas that process social and emotional information. The volume of gray matter, or neural cell bodies, making up the anterior cingulate cortex, an area that helps detect errors and resolve conflicts, tends to be larger in liberals. And the amygdala, which is important for regulating emotions and evaluating threats, is larger in conservatives.

More at link:

[link:https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/conservative-and-liberal-brains-might-have-some-real-differences/|

[abqtommy]

12. Thanks for this great response. nt

[StarryNite]

16. You're welcome.

There are other articles on the differences in the brain between liberal and conservatives. Knowing there are neurological differences has helped me grasp why the ones on the 'right' are the way they are and why they are not open to seeing the light. It's kept me from banging my head against the wall...for the most part. They seem to be a lost cause.

[cadoman]

17. it's almost strange to read this

"On the whole, the research shows, conservatives desire security, predictability and authority more than liberals do, and liberals are more comfortable with novelty, nuance and complexity. "

Conservatives have completely thrown out all interest in security and predictability during COVID, and certainly don't have any trust in science and other institutions of authority.

I think liberals still obviously embrace novelty, nuance, and complexity more than conservatives, but we have also embraced security, predictability, and scientifically-validated authority. What's left but to understand that modern conservatives have nothing to offer, and thus are not even human?

[WhiskeyGrinder]

13. I hate this kind of shit. They're human, that's all.

[Funtatlaguy]

14. They believe in a one big powerful male deity, dictator, authoritarian.

[Steelrolled]

18. Don't think so - same claim was made about black people years ago.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

19. Republicans are narcissists

And sociopaths and authoritarian,dark triads,as thier followers are.

Dark triad personality types are too numerous,they want control are vengeful and are the gop.