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Could you say more about how you expect this outcome would be harmful to people?

by cbr 9y ago

DoreenMichele 9y ago
There is an ugly medical joke about a doctor castrating his patient to cure his headaches when it could have been cured by a larger pair of undies: http://jokes4us.com/dirtyjokes/castrationjoke.html http://jokes4us.com/dirtyjokes/castrationjoke.html Historically, IQ tests were frequently used to justify racism and anti immigrant sentiment. IQ tests are strongly influenced by things like culture, so outgroups typically perform less well on them. You need to be very skeptical as to the mental models being applied to something you cannot currently change, like your genes. I have a genetic disorder. I was diagnosed late in life. So I had been managing my condition a long time without a diagnosis and getting a diagnosis empowered me to get a lot healthier. I have been endlessly crapped on for talking about that online because people are sure it cannot possibly be true. This is where identifying someone's genes gets very dangerous because our current mental models frame genes as inescapable destiny and such widespread belief tends to become self fulfilling prophecy by cutting you off from other options. One night years ago, I dreamed of someone with chains around their neck that they could not remove from that end. The solution in the dream was to break the chains at the other end in order to get free, though it would not entirely free them of the burden of forever carrying these chains around. They at least we're no longer trapped. I interpreted this dream to mean that the chains are my DNA, which I cannot escape. But I can change my diet and lifestyle. It isn't a cure, but it beats the hell out of what conventional medicine has to offer me. It is the equivalent of saying "No, thanks, doc. I will keep my nuts and go get bigger undies." And I live in fear of the possibility that someday I shall be told that getting bigger undies is not a valid choice and I must submit to castration for my own good and the good of the larger community. (metaphorically speaking since I don't actually have any nuts)

Could you say more about how you expect this outcome would be harmful to people?

by cbr 9y ago

Could you say more about how you expect this outcome would be harmful to people?

There is an ugly medical joke about a doctor castrating his patient to cure his headaches when it could have been cured by a larger pair of undies: http://jokes4us.com/dirtyjokes/castrationjoke.html http://jokes4us.com/dirtyjokes/castrationjoke.html Historically, IQ tests were frequently used to justify racism and anti immigrant sentiment. IQ tests are strongly influenced by things like culture, so outgroups typically perform less well on them. You need to be very skeptical as to the mental models being applied to something you cannot currently change, like your genes. I have a genetic disorder. I was diagnosed late in life. So I had been managing my condition a long time without a diagnosis and getting a diagnosis empowered me to get a lot healthier. I have been endlessly crapped on for talking about that online because people are sure it cannot possibly be true. This is where identifying someone's genes gets very dangerous because our current mental models frame genes as inescapable destiny and such widespread belief tends to become self fulfilling prophecy by cutting you off from other options. One night years ago, I dreamed of someone with chains around their neck that they could not remove from that end. The solution in the dream was to break the chains at the other end in order to get free, though it would not entirely free them of the burden of forever carrying these chains around. They at least we're no longer trapped. I interpreted this dream to mean that the chains are my DNA, which I cannot escape. But I can change my diet and lifestyle. It isn't a cure, but it beats the hell out of what conventional medicine has to offer me. It is the equivalent of saying "No, thanks, doc. I will keep my nuts and go get bigger undies." And I live in fear of the possibility that someday I shall be told that getting bigger undies is not a valid choice and I must submit to castration for my own good and the good of the larger community. (metaphorically speaking since I don't actually have any nuts)