[ExI] How vulnerable is the world?

[Mike Dougherty]

On Fri, Feb 12, 2021, 10:46 AM William Flynn Wallace via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

>  But blaming the virus on an Asian person who may, in fact, be a native
> American?  I don't get it.  If you get it, please explain it to me.  I
> realize that we Mensa-type people are far ahead of most people.  We
> understand what we think and why.  We, or rather I, just don't get the
> logic of low level thinking.  Help!
>

Xenophobia is a deeply rooted trait. I imagine you already know anything I
could say about it.

Scapegoat is a coping mechanism. In this case, virus mutation (natural or
weapon-grade) is too complex for the scientificly illiterate.. so "bad
guys" is easier to compartmentalize.  It's even better when the bad guys
are not-us because "Them bad guys" trigger the xenophobia mechanics.

Agency/control... if you feel powerless in the fight against covid (can't
see it, can't understand it, you can if it gets you) then the
substitute/proxy scapegoat that you can beat up has to be good enough.
Somehow it makes you feel like you did 'something' to fight covid if you
can fight/harm/destroy the symbolic representation of it.  Of course this
doesn't thwart a virus, but the appearance of a protector/hero who does
'something' when everyone else does nothing surely activates alpha status
and makes your group respect you more (and in the most primitive goals,
have your offspring)

Is there anything human animals do that isn't ultimately motivated this way?

>
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