“The characteristic human trait is not awareness but conformity, and the characteristic result is religious warfare. Other animals fight for territory or food; but, uniquely in the animal kingdom, human beings fight for their 'beliefs.' The reason is that beliefs guide behavior, which has evolutionary importance among human beings. But at a time when our behavior may well lead us to extinction, I see no reason to assume we have any awareness at all. We are stubborn, self-destructive conformists. Any other view of our species is just a self-congratulatory delusion.” HumansWellsMaySelfReasonFightingBeliefReligiousHuman BeingsAnimalResultsViewsAwarenessBehaviorImportanceIndependenceAssumingSpeciesGuidesKingdomsCharacteristicsDestructiveDelusionNo ReasonConformityTerritoryTraitsWarfareStubbornExtinctionSelf DestructiveConformistAnimal Kingdom Book:The Lost World Source: The Lost World
“A whole lot of us go through life assuming that we are basically right, basically all the time, about basically everything: about our political and intellectual convictions, our religious and moral beliefs, our assessments of other people, our memories, our grasp of facts. As absurd as it sounds when we stop to think about it, our steady state seems to be one of unconsciously assuming that we are very close to omniscient.” PeopleThinkingStatesWholeFactsSeemsPoliticalBeliefSoundReligiousMemoriesMoralIntellectualAssumingConvictionAbsurdArroganceSteadyOur MemoriesAssessmentOmniscientMoral Beliefs Author:Kathryn Schulz
“To get a person's real opinion, ask what she thinks everyone else believes... If people truly hold a particular belief, they are more likely to think that others agree or have had similar experiences. [People] tend to assume that other people have had life histories at least somewhat similar to their own. When we talk about other people, we are often talking about ourselves, whether we know it ourselves.” PeopleIfsThinkingKnowsBelievePersonsRealAsksBeliefTalkingOpinionParticularAgreeAssuming Author:Tyler Cowen
“To regard the successful experiences which ensue from a belief as a criterion of its truth is one thing--and a thing that is sometimes bad and sometimes good--but to assume that truth itself consists in the process by which it is verified is a different thing and always bad.” DifferentSometimesTruthBeliefProcessSuccessfulOne ThingTruth IsRegardAssumingDifferent ThingsCriteria Author:William Pepperell Montague
“Realize that your physical experience and environment is the materialization of your beliefs. If you find great exuberance, health, effective work, abundance, smiles on the faces of those who you meet, then take it for granted that your beliefs are beneficial. If you see a world that is good, people like you, take it for granted again, that your beliefs are beneficial. But if you find poor health, a lack of meaningful work, a lack of abundance, a world of sorrow and evil, then assume your beliefs are faulty and begin examining them.” PeopleIfsWorldFacesEvilBeliefRealizingPoorEnvironmentLike YouSorrowAssumingMeaningfulGrantedAbundanceGood PeopleBeneficialExaminingExuberanceMeaningful WorkPoor Health Author:Seth
“Cross-cultural reality testing forces people to examine both their own and others' understandings of reality. Most people simply assume that the way they look at things is the way things really are, and judge other cultures' views of reality before understanding them. These judgments are based on ethnocentrism, which closes the door to further understanding and communication. Furthermore, ethnocentric judgments keep missionaries from examining their own beliefs and values to determine which of them are based on biblical foundations and which on their cultural beliefs.” PeopleWayLooksRealityValuesCultureBeliefForceUnderstandingViewsDoorsJudgingCommunicationJudgmentCrossesFoundationAssumingDetermineBiblicalTestingExaminingOther CulturesBeliefs And Values Author:Paul G
“My research suggests that when people get rebuffed they become frustrated and angry, but they would do better to become curious about the reason for the rejection. I also found that people assume that others are like them, operating under the same knowledge, beliefs, constraints and priorities. This mirror assumption makes it easier to speculate about why others act in the way they do, but sometimes the mirror assumption is wrong.” PeopleWaySometimesReasonFoundBeliefEasierResearchMirrorsAngryAssumingPrioritiesCuriousRejectionAssumptionFrustratedConstraints Author:Gary A. Klein
“Quite simply, there can be no popular sovereignty without a real belief in the value of government. If government does not assume and carry out public responsibilities, less accountable institutions such as the corporation will do the job in their own self-interest.” IfsDoeRealSelfGovernmentJobsValuesBeliefInterestResponsibilityInstitutionsAssumingCorporationsSovereigntySelf InterestPopular Sovereignty Author:Charles Derber