Do you have any prejudices?

[Whateverist]

Sounds like a good time for some make-up sex.

But you can't take the responsibility upon yourself alone. Let me help.

[Fruity]

Apophenia wrote:

Sounds like a good time for some make-up sex.

Are you laughing at me Apophenia? If so, please continue because I like your style. Does this include the eating me offer from the other thread, or is this one a whole new one on its own?

Oh fuck. Now I remembered the eating me while still alive comment. Nope, I'm not getting any homework done tonight!

[Minimalist]

Sewing machines. Seriously: fuck sewing machines. I've been known to refuse homeless sewing machines a night's stay in my house, known to lynch the sewing machines I pass by in the street, known to spit upon a beaten and battered sewing machine so as to let it know how unwelcome it is in my presence

Has anyone ever mentioned that you are out of your fucking mind?

[Jackalope]

Sewing machines. Seriously: fuck sewing machines. I've been known to refuse homeless sewing machines a night's stay in my house, known to lynch the sewing machines I pass by in the street, known to spit upon a beaten and battered sewing machine so as to let it know how unwelcome it is in my presence

Has anyone ever mentioned that you are out of your fucking mind?

What, you don't read posts here?

[Violet]

What about bananas?

That's different.

[Polaris]

I think American atheists are inferior in every way to European atheists. I equate American atheists (well the ones who label themselves as such) with Christian Fundamentalists in terms of intelligence and rationality.

[Violet]

"animals" can learn also. so what? your point isn't fully valid.

You are an animal... what's your contention?

---

I'm predudiced against flamebait threads.

I know, right!? Aren't they just the best? That's rhetorical, by the way, because there's no question about it: flamebait threads are the greatest

---

A person who denies facts is abnormal.

* Violet snorts.

The shit children say, man... the shit children say XD

that's not my elemental point though. there is nothing wrong with prejudice beyond what "modern" society says.

I know it isn't your elemental point. This would be that...



I might have stolen it from you.

You're not a history major, are you? I know you're not a sociology major.

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I do, against native americans.

Hookers, all of them.

The rape statistics demonstrate the truth of this. QED.

That isn't misused: that's adorable.

---

Has anyone ever mentioned that you are out of your fucking mind?

A few people have had pause to say that, yes.

Blame LastPoet, though... I don't take kindly to people accusing me of being Old Hat.

---

I think American atheists are inferior in every way to European atheists. I equate American atheists (well the ones who label themselves as such) with Christian Fundamentalists in terms of intelligence and rationality.

Also obesity.

Maybe you would do better to realize that you think Americans are worthless, regardless of their religious stance.

Though... that would mean you actually care about why you think what you think.

[festive1]

[quote='festive1' pid='450558' dateline='1369659223']
This. Everyone has their prejudices, whether they recognize them as such, or not.
The challenge is to recognize prejudices for what they are, unfair biases of an entire group often based on individual examples. And ultimately to overcome them.
[\quote]
Who says that we need to do so?

Prejudices are part of human nature. It's only contemporary morals that cite they are wrong. Go tell people 200 years ago that prejudice is wrong, and see what they say lol..

Just in general, I think society has progressed positively in the past 2 centuries. I'm not trying to judge historic people by modern standards and fully recognize everyone is a product of their times.
You're right, prejudices are part of human nature. We know this, so what function did/does it serve? Well in prehistoric times I'd imagine it was very helpful in preventing death. One person is killed by a rival tribe, and a prejudice forms to prevent others from dying the same way. That would be helpful. However, in modern society, we are so diverse, socially, prejudices can do far more harm than good. Really the only way humans are going to continue, when you get right down to it, is if we can manage to not kill each other (leaving aside some horrid plague or some such that comes along and wipes us all out), we have to at least tolerate each other. Prejudices don't help in that arena, actually quite the opposite.

[dazzn]

[quote='festive1' pid='450558' dateline='1369659223']
This. Everyone has their prejudices, whether they recognize them as such, or not.
The challenge is to recognize prejudices for what they are, unfair biases of an entire group often based on individual examples. And ultimately to overcome them.
[\quote]
Who says that we need to do so?

Prejudices are part of human nature. It's only contemporary morals that cite they are wrong. Go tell people 200 years ago that prejudice is wrong, and see what they say lol..

Just in general, I think society has progressed positively in the past 2 centuries. I'm not trying to judge historic people by modern standards and fully recognize everyone is a product of their times.
You're right, prejudices are part of human nature. We know this, so what function did/does it serve? Well in prehistoric times I'd imagine it was very helpful in preventing death. One person is killed by a rival tribe, and a prejudice forms to prevent others from dying the same way. That would be helpful. However, in modern society, we are so diverse, socially, prejudices can do far more harm than good. Really the only way humans are going to continue, when you get right down to it, is if we can manage to not kill each other (leaving aside some horrid plague or some such that comes along and wipes us all out), we have to at least tolerate each other. Prejudices don't help in that arena, actually quite the opposite.

Who cares about co-operation? It's also accepted "in modern society" that people can hold any opinion they choose.

Look, the world is not a perfect or "nice" place. Why do you care if people dislike others? We can opt to dislike others on any basis we choose, can we not?

[festive1]

This. Everyone has their prejudices, whether they recognize them as such, or not.
The challenge is to recognize prejudices for what they are, unfair biases of an entire group often based on individual examples. And ultimately to overcome them.

My main recognizable prejudice? Southern accents. In conversation I'll often assume a person with a Southern accent is less educated and less intelligent than someone without a pronounced accent. Of course this is entirely biased and often incorrect. When I catch myself doing this, I try to mentally check myself and give the person back those automatically deducted IQ points. Nobody is stupid until they prove themselves to be such, and even unintelligent people can have something important to add.

Who says that we need to do so?

Prejudices are part of human nature. It's only contemporary morals that cite they are wrong. Go tell people 200 years ago that prejudice is wrong, and see what they say lol..

My first response was eaten by the internet

I'll reiterate:
One can't apply modern morality to historical figures. We are all products of our times and are limited by such. It is unfair and dishonest to hold people from such different times to one particular standard, it's better to compare them to the morals of their day and see how they fair.
Prejudices are human, you are absolutely correct. To me this raises the question of why? Why were prejudices helpful to humans? I can see them being helpful in prehistoric times, when let's say a rival clan massacred your people, so you shun all outsiders and focus on your own group. That's damn helpful if you've got a biologically sustainable breeding population, instead of engaging in outright warfare, which I'm sure was practiced oftentimes too. But not so helpful in today's modern, diverse, socio-cultural context.
There are many impulses our brains have, but humans should attempt to rise above mere impulses, at least most of the time.