I'm curious how many others will be convinced by the high correlation between the religiosity of various nations of the world and both violent crime and infant mortality that our religiosity here in the United States has relegated us to the status of a third world nation. If so, we probably become the wealthiest third world nation in the world, beating out Brazil, who is pretty much not third world anymore.

http://tinyurl.com/3exqpp
http://tinyurl.com/lcv4n

Or, perhaps it is our health care, or lack thereof, in this country that makes us solidly among the worst in infant mortality and life expectancy of the nations most readers would consider developed and democratic. Hmm... Could be either or a combination of both. Either way, it's getting harder and harder to be proud to be an American.

What follows features gross oversimplifications, but nonetheless does not sacrifice validity for simplicity. Broad brush and primary colors, but you can still make sense of the picture.

•  •

The tendency toward religiosity is not the cause, it is a symptom. The cause is declining intelligence. Religiosity is but one in a constellation of related psychological and psychosocial dysfunctions exacerbated and amplified by lowered reasoning capability in the gen pop.

Interestingly enough, this is so despite rising IQ scores. The answer to this seeming paradox is that although the average citizen is indeed more intelligent than his or her ancestors, that increase in intelligence is insufficient to match the increase in intelligence required to deal effectively with the rapid changes in Western Soc.

IOW, to be as culturally and socially skilled as a citizen born X years earlier, a 5% / decade increase in IQ is demanded. But the gen pop is only advancing at a rate of, say, 3% / decade. Thus a net decrease in IQ, and consequent reversion toward social paradigms of the past, due principally to the effective decline in ability to adapt to the intellectual demands of the present.

The numbers given are purely for illustrative purposes. The trends, however, exhibit the correlations mentioned, for the general causative factors given.

Either societal development must slow down - which regression, in fact, brings a measure of as a side-effect, via negative feedback - or education must be drastically improved.

Lotsa luck w/ either one... 

insufficient to match the increase in intelligence required to deal effectively with the rapid changes in Western Soc.

Not to be humorous or totally off topic, but the indifference to science and technology in America never ceases to amaze me.  I wonder how much trouble a creationist has hooking up an HDTV or figuring out the GPS / stereo in a new car, since they seem so anti-science.  I've actually overheard, "Cripes, you can't even make coffee anymore without a 10 page manual and the skill set required to program a computer."  Maybe they'd be happy with that "water into wine" deal, it seems so much simpler.

I've seen many people get frustrated with the level of competence required to do things today, like work a cell phone, so perhaps religion is of some solace.  No, I'm not picking on people over 70.  Without a basic understanding of logic and the scientific method, no matter what religion you are, you're going to be left behind.  And religion doesn't seem to teach logic or the scientific method.

Wendy's makes chili and they make cheeseburgers, but they won't sell you a chili-cheeseburger because there's no button for it on the register and the employees can't make change.  Teach that in Sunday school, we might be better off.

Does this make any sense?

The tendency toward religiosity is not the cause, it is a symptom. The cause is declining intelligence. Religiosity is but one in a constellation of related psychological and psychosocial dysfunctions exacerbated and amplified by lowered reasoning capability in the gen pop.

Interesting point that I had neither heard of nor thought of previously. One comment though. If this were the sole cause, then religiosity would be on the rise world wide. Unless IQ, for lack of a better measure, were rising at a faster rate in other countries, the religiosity as effect rather than cause, would be evenly rising around the world. In fact, I would even go so far as to suggest that this hypothesis of yours would be better correlated to quality of education than to IQ. Changing it to quality of education, especially in science, as cause and religiosity as effect should then be measurable. Similar studies might determine the truth or falsehood of the hypothesis. Let me know how that goes.

Not to be humorous or totally off topic, but the indifference to science and technology in America never ceases to amaze me.  I wonder how much trouble a creationist has hooking up an HDTV or figuring out the GPS / stereo in a new car, since they seem so anti-science.  I've actually overheard, "Cripes, you can't even make coffee anymore without a 10 page manual and the skill set required to program a computer."  Maybe they'd be happy with that "water into wine" deal, it seems so much simpler.

(snip)

Does this make any sense?

Internet Hell Desk Video

I wonder if intelligence is declining in a relative sense as 3HC postulates or simply changing in an evolutionary manner? After all, not everyone is suffering psychological and psychosocial dysfunction. Some are suffering and lashing out, some are suffering and seeking solace in myth and superstition and some are adapting.

Perhaps violent crime, infant mortality, religiosity and many other psychological and psychosocial dysfunctions are merely symptoms of change on such a grand scale, we have difficulty distancing ourselves sufficiently to gain perspective on the event. After all, our lives are short and evolution is long.

Here's another take on religiosity that was posted in a reply on my blog site where I linked to this. I will include it here for completeness. It's also good read on its own.

Put the blame where it belongs: God and the Republican Party

Gee Fellas==the most demonstrative illustration of the decline in IQ must be THIS thread?

Scott--I guess you are doing it for effect, but "by definition" the GOUSA is NOT a third world country.  Takes more than religion to alter what is basically an economic measure?

Last time I looked, IQ tests are modified every 5-7 years to maintain all the nice statistical measurements and political necessities--ie, the average is maintained at 100, Standard Deviation of 10, no net difference between the sexes and so forth.  Love to see the study that says IQ's are going up? 

It is rather anti-scientific to equate correlation with causation?  Where is any analysis at all?  There was some.  I think the notion that religiosity in GOUSA is driven as much by politics as by religion itself is very key.  and Geeks designing gadgets for geeks will never say much about the science/religion orientation of the population.

Gee Fellas==the most demonstrative illustration of the decline in IQ must be THIS thread?

Scott--I guess you are doing it for effect, but "by definition" the GOUSA is NOT a third world country.  Takes more than religion to alter what is basically an economic measure?

Well, many third world countries are wealthy, especially oil rich ones. One of the things that defines first or second world is the standard of living of the people. Ours is rapidly declining. Another is tremendous income disparity between the ruling class and the people. We're pretty bad on that score too. The fact that we were once the richest nation in the world with an excellent standard of living does not mean that we cannot slip back into third world nation status. What measures do you use to measure, as objectively as possible, that quality that we consider to be "third-worldiness" to coin a new word. (Can't help it; as a geek, I just love wordification.)

Last time I looked, IQ tests are modified every 5-7 years to maintain all the nice statistical measurements and political necessities--ie, the average is maintained at 100, Standard Deviation of 10, no net difference between the sexes and so forth.  Love to see the study that says IQ's are going up? 

Actually, I believe the studies do show a progressive increase over time. I don't believe it either. Have you seen the movie Idiocracy? Great premise. They didn't do as much with it as they could have. But, the interviews at the beginning are classic and the rest has it's moments. I gave it three stars. I actually watched it because Neil DeGrasse Tyson plugged it in an intro to a lecture at the Hayden Planetarium.

It is rather anti-scientific to equate correlation with causation?  Where is any analysis at all?  There was some.  I think the notion that religiosity in GOUSA is driven as much by politics as by religion itself is very key.  and Geeks designing gadgets for geeks will never say much about the science/religion orientation of the population.

True about correlation and causation. I think in my head the title of this thread had a question mark at the end. Sorry I forgot to actually put it there. I did intend this to be more of a question and a discussion. I do think that we're in a positive feedback loop of religiosity driving politics which drives religiosity. It's probably the beginning of a bad downward spiral into a new dark age if our country and our species last that long.

I do think that we're in a positive feedback loop of religiosity driving politics which drives religiosity. It's probably the beginning of a bad downward spiral into a new dark age if our country and our species last that long.

Perhaps the title of this Topic should have been something like Religiosity Makes the US a Hypocritical Nation?

Let's face it, likely none of the current candidates believes a word of the religiosity they're spouting in order to convince unintelligent, superstitious morons to vote for them. I'd hazard a guess George W. Bush, even though he's dumb as a stump, didn't believe of word he was saying and he still doesn't believe a word of it.

Does anyone at all think Dick Cheney believes in Nobodaddy? Certainly the religious Neanderthals seem to be quite disappointed in Georgie Boy and Dickie, too.

Voters who think any candidates at all are telling the truth about anything at all - are fools. That's the primary truth making this multi-year process of electing a President so grossly wasteful and patently nonsensical.

Y'know, I haven't run away... nor from another thread, which I likewise haven't had enough time to seriously address. One or two things I have said require a more rigorous explanation, having been misconstrued... patience is a virtue, or so they tell me.

Y'know, I haven't run away... nor from another thread, which I likewise haven't had enough time to seriously address. One or two things I have said require a more rigorous explanation, having been misconstrued... patience is a virtue, or so they tell me.

I'm sure we're all breathless with anticipation. I know I am.

I'm sure we're all breathless with anticipation. I know I am.

I see you shiver with antici













pation.

I will have you know, sarcasm - and I have this on the best authority - is the lowest form of wit...