Authoritative Concepts & Beliefs
It's no secret that you can get a child to believe anything. They will continue to believe it until they learn otherwise. If there is an emotional attachment, it may be followed by denial. Like when I learned Santa wasn't real...
Humans will accept just about any concept if it comes from a source we see as authoritative. If there is something we can interpret as 'proof', it further cements their concept as a belief it must be true. Kids are excited about Santa when they first learn about him, but when they see him in the mall - oh boy - they know Santa is real. While adults outgrow Santa, they do not outgrow this behavior. Humans used to think the Earth was flat and at the center of the universe because it was told to them on good authority and the sun and stars appeared to rotate around us. Just as children want to believe in Santa, all humans want to believe the 'truths' those in authority taught them.
But just because an authority figure says something is true and there appears to be supporting evidence, doesn't mean it actually is true. In third and fourth density consciousness, one is more concerned about social conformity than truth. This allows ideas to continue propagating without investigation if they are actually true.
There are two funny experiments which illustrate this perfectly. Have you heard of the "Monkey Ladder Experiment"? Check out this video below or search it on Youtube on your own sometime.
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Similar experiements have been done on humans with the exact same result, like this one
(or search "Social experiment Social conformity").As Grace Hopper says, "The most damaging phrase in the language is: 'It’s always been done that way.'"
People assume because society works a certain way, it should continue to work that way forever. Their ego will resist new social ideas, even if the new ideas would benefit them. Imagine going back in time thousands of years to ancient Egypt and talking with an Egyptian citizen who was raised to view their king as a god. You could try to explain a concept like democracy to them, but they would find the idea ludicrous because they know their king is a god. I mean, look at all the slaves he commands. Could a normal man do that?
Same thing happens when you try to talk to people about new ways of doing things today. This is especially true with the older generations. They were raised in fear of communism, so as soon as you bring up new social concepts, they associate it with communism and their ego goes nuts. Although there may be no connection to communism whatsoever, their mind is unable to logically consider the new concept.
CULTURE
We are born with the hardware - society puts in the software. We can only know what we are exposed to and tend to accept it as fact. One has no choice but to perceive reality through the Lens of their culture until they begin to question their own mind.
A boy born in Japan will adopt the cultural worldview of Japan and will likely grow up thinking he should become a "Salary Man." If you are born in America, you will likely believe in the "American Dream". If you are born in the western world, you are more likely to understand complex topics in individual pieces, where if you are born in the eastern worldview, you will grow up to see things more holistically. This has nothing to do with genes and everything to do with culture. If a Chinese baby is adopted by American parents, she will grow up to view the world as an American.
SIDE NOTE: There is a minor exception to this rule - If someone is exposed to ideas from outside their dominant cultural worldview, they begin to have a choice on how to perceive the world. If you are lucky enough to have an 'out there' family member, try to understand how they came to understand the world differently. Any time we get an opportunity to question our worldview is a gift!
Changing the flow of the Great River is not going to be easy and it certainly isn't going to happen by telling other people they are wrong and need to change. It is important to note, when you are raised in a cultural story, you do not have the ability to view it completely objectively. You may be able to get close, but it is part of your basic understanding of reality. There are elements you will not be able to see. Understanding exactly what the story is, is less important than realizing you were raised in someone else's story of what life is and should be.
There is an old saw in litigation - "It doesn't matter what you argue, only who you argue it to." @theprism captured this very well above. A person's belief systems will blind them to objective reality. They will cherry pick facts to support their preconceived ideas of how things should be. And if the facts become too incongruent with their beliefs, will "attack the messenger." Just watch Fox News and MSNBC and you can see this is not a liberal or conservative problem. It is a human race problem. Both sides honestly believe they are being objective and the other guy is being dishonest with the truth. I wish I had a solution to this problem. Maybe smarter people than me can figure this one out.
I like this statement from you: "They will cherry pick facts to support their preconceived ideas of how things should be. And if the facts become too incongruent with their beliefs, will 'attack the messenger'." Thanks for reading, man!
This reminds me of my parents who won't accept anything as true until it is 'in the paper' and then once they read something 'in the paper', it is unshakably true for them.
Ugh, the "paper" and the news are the worst.. but thank you for reading :)
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Thank you @ensteemit, I've got it. :)
@originalworks
I understood that in the world there are two main religions, that makes 6 billions slaves: Money and Obey to the authorities. (Mark Passio)
I found all very interesting but, because I read english as a second language, I didn't understand
Could you please explain in other words?
Thank you very much!
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