> The problem with society and you is that you choose to ignore the genetic factor and only choose to examine the environmental factor because it fits with your

> The problem with society and you is that you choose to ignore the genetic factor and only choose to examine the environmental factor because it fits with your social construct of how the world should be In my case this is 100% wrong. I spent several years being a Dawkins devotee and committed atheist/materialist and genetic determinist. I've since had cause to learn more about environmental/non-genetic factors, and have undertaken extensive research and self-experimentation on ways that personality, behaviour and cognition can be influenced. I don't discount the genetic factors, at all. But I've learned through deep research and experience that genetics are only part of the picture, and that non-genetic factors are extremely important, because whether or not they are more than 50% influential, the fact that they are significant at all opens up huge opportunities for life improvement for people who would otherwise be written off as being genetically impaired, when their problems may not actually be genetic at all. I accept your observation that many people's views on this topic are ideologically motivated. I'm not one of those people. I do observe, however, that the overwhelmingly dominant view in the biomedical science community since the discovery of DNA has been that genetics are the primary determinant of all human traits including intelligence and personality, and that this has an overwhelming influence on the kind of research that gets funded and the views that supposedly "intelligent" or "rational" people are supposed to hold and promote. I know the people who are ideologically motivated to promote alternative positions are not offering much of value, but that doesn't mean that alternative positions of value don't exist, just that they're being drowned out by noisy dogmatists on both sides. My main position is that it's time to break through the dogma from all quarters and embrace a balanced approach that is both scientifically grounded and that empowers people to build better lives, no matter their genetics.