Alan Archibald It is common for anxiety to increase with age. This "buildup" appears to be a subset of old folk's curmudgeonliness. (Or vice versa.)
To explain my view fully, I must provide some context.
In The Western World -- particularly in what used to be called "Christendom" -- we have hugely (yuuugely?) overvalued the ability of will power.
We have done so because Christian moral theology posits that every individual is completely responsible for his own actions.
However, what we now know is that the human brain is not fully developed -- not completely "wired" -- until age 25 or 26, and this incomplete wiring results in young people's inability to separate seduction of immediate gratification from a clear understanding of downstream consequences.
In fact, insufficient wiring simply blocks the view of downstream consequences. Who, for example, could imagine in their teens and early twenties what raising kids is like.
Against this backdrop, I suggest that "the survival of the species" requires "incomplete wiring" so that the "irresistable" power of sexual attraction "forces" people across the "gender divide," thus ensuring that an abundance of kids are born when few humans would cross that same chasm if the volcanic gratification of sex (and the associated pleasures of "animal" intimacy) did not blind the still-unwired brain to the daunting consequences to come.
And so, Nature-Universe-God have "orchestrated" brain development so that "will power" - especially in young adults - is a laughably hapless device.
It may even be fair to say that homo sapiens is designed to make bad decisions -- certainly during the most vigorous reproductive years -- which leads us to a whole new world of "moral theology" (or simply "morality" if you want to leave "God" out of it).
The inconvenient truth is this.
At the anatomical-and-physiological levels, it is often impossible for adolescents and young adults to make decisions with an "informed conscience" because they are intrinsically impermeable to the realizations that comprise an informed conscience.
And without "informed conscience," traditional Catholic moral theology says there is no moral responsibility for one's acts no matter how "sinful" they may be. (Think of young, idealistic American soldiers going off to fight and die in Vietnam, thinking they're protecting The Homeland. Mingya!)
Then there are all the other autonomous syndromes (Adult ADHD being the one I'm studying closely at the moment). Every one of them prevents people from making what are traditionally considered "moral decisions" because they do not know -- and CANNOT KNOW -- what they're doing. Even with diagnosis, acceptance of diagnosis, and long, sustained treatment, they may never know!
In fact, most "autonomous syndromes" create such impenetrable "brain fog" that they impose a brain-predicated "obligation" to perform actions that are normally considered "morally wrong." It's a complete topsy-turvy view of Reality in which doing wrong is, "self-evidently," to behave virtously.
It's complicated --- far more complicated than "the simple-minded" can entertain, much less investigate.
For those Americans who elected SOBMF because his simpleminded deceptions struck them as true, it is better (and far safer) to run with the anodyne trinity: "God said it. I believe it. That settles it." And Bob's your uncle...
Monday I depart for three weeks in Mexico so this might be my last missive for a while.
Pax,
Alan Archibald
To explain my view fully, I must provide some context.
In The Western World -- particularly in what used to be called "Christendom" -- we have hugely (yuuugely?) overvalued the ability of will power.
We have done so because Christian moral theology posits that every individual is completely responsible for his own actions.
However, what we now know is that the human brain is not fully developed -- not completely "wired" -- until age 25 or 26, and this incomplete wiring results in young people's inability to separate seduction of immediate gratification from a clear understanding of downstream consequences.
In fact, insufficient wiring simply blocks the view of downstream consequences. Who, for example, could imagine in their teens and early twenties what raising kids is like.
Against this backdrop, I suggest that "the survival of the species" requires "incomplete wiring" so that the "irresistable" power of sexual attraction "forces" people across the "gender divide," thus ensuring that an abundance of kids are born when few humans would cross that same chasm if the volcanic gratification of sex (and the associated pleasures of "animal" intimacy) did not blind the still-unwired brain to the daunting consequences to come.
And so, Nature-Universe-God have "orchestrated" brain development so that "will power" - especially in young adults - is a laughably hapless device.
It may even be fair to say that homo sapiens is designed to make bad decisions -- certainly during the most vigorous reproductive years -- which leads us to a whole new world of "moral theology" (or simply "morality" if you want to leave "God" out of it).
The inconvenient truth is this.
At the anatomical-and-physiological levels, it is often impossible for adolescents and young adults to make decisions with an "informed conscience" because they are intrinsically impermeable to the realizations that comprise an informed conscience.
And without "informed conscience," traditional Catholic moral theology says there is no moral responsibility for one's acts no matter how "sinful" they may be. (Think of young, idealistic American soldiers going off to fight and die in Vietnam, thinking they're protecting The Homeland. Mingya!)
Then there are all the other autonomous syndromes (Adult ADHD being the one I'm studying closely at the moment). Every one of them prevents people from making what are traditionally considered "moral decisions" because they do not know -- and CANNOT KNOW -- what they're doing. Even with diagnosis, acceptance of diagnosis, and long, sustained treatment, they may never know!
In fact, most "autonomous syndromes" create such impenetrable "brain fog" that they impose a brain-predicated "obligation" to perform actions that are normally considered "morally wrong." It's a complete topsy-turvy view of Reality in which doing wrong is, "self-evidently," to behave virtously.
It's complicated --- far more complicated than "the simple-minded" can entertain, much less investigate.
For those Americans who elected SOBMF because his simpleminded deceptions struck them as true, it is better (and far safer) to run with the anodyne trinity: "God said it. I believe it. That settles it." And Bob's your uncle...
The Over-Valuation Of Will Power:
"Will You Lose Weight? Take A Look At Your Poop"
Understanding the Teen Brain - Health Encyclopedia - University of ...
https://www.urmc.rochester.edu › Encyclopedia
The Teen Brain: It's Just Not Grown Up Yet : NPR
Brain Maturity Extends Well Beyond Teen Years : NPR
True adulthood doesn't begin until age 25 - Telegraph
The Neuroscience of 20-Somethings - Scientific American Blog Network
Young Adult Development Project - MIT Human Resource
Monday I depart for three weeks in Mexico so this might be my last missive for a while.
Pax,
Alan Archibald
No comments:
Post a Comment