<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD><TITLE></TITLE>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content=text/html;charset=ISO-8859-1>
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1479" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY text=#000000 bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV>Hi Lynn,</DIV>
<DIV>Yes, thanks for reminding me re both of those guys in relation to the
question (I like both of them!): I'll do a search for them and see if i can
find that particular article! </DIV>
<DIV>Also...a while ago I was reading "The Age of Bifurcation: Understanding the
Changing World" by Ervin Laszlo, and he had a wonderful few pages on how to be a
materialist and spiritual at the same time. He's speaking at a place in
MA--and seems to be connected to WIE?--the place that Howard seems to be
connected to...I wish I could go...</DIV>
<DIV>cheerys,</DIV>
<DIV>Alice</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=ljohnson@solution-consulting.com
href="mailto:ljohnson@solution-consulting.com">Lynn D. Johnson, Ph.D.</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=andrewsa@newpaltz.edu
href="mailto:andrewsa@newpaltz.edu">Alice Andrews</A> ; <A
title=paleopsych@paleopsych.org href="mailto:paleopsych@paleopsych.org">The
new improved paleopsych list</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, February 23, 2005 10:50
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Paleopsych] Re: paleopsych
Digest, Vol 9, Issue 20</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Marty Seligman (learned helplessness theorist, <I>Learned
Optimism, Authentic Happiness</I>, former APA president) - an atheist -
mentions that as a key to true happiness. He reviews literature that religious
people are generally happier and more fulfilled, more resilient. Czentmyhali
(spelling!) at U Chicago finds that kids involved in something greater than
themselves are much more likely to experience "flow" and periods of greater
happiness. Religion is clearly an adaptive force. BTW, I don't want to hear
arguments that religion is behind most wars. That is a pretty tired argument
that was thoroughly debunked by the 20th Century. <BR>Lynn<BR><BR>Alice
Andrews wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE cite=mid031e01c519ae$6d1984c0$1af9ae44@CallaStudios type="cite">
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1479" name=GENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
<DIV>
<DIV>Hi Gerry,</DIV>
<DIV>Thanks for the note...</DIV>
<DIV>There was an interesting article somewhere--maybe Frank sent it
in?--about teenagers and the possiblity that what they were missing was
'religion' or 'spirituality' or a 'sense of purpose and meaning beyond
them.' Do you remember reading that on paleo some time ago? I can't find
it...But it seems apropos to your missive. (If anyone knows it and can send
out again, I'd appreciate!)</DIV>
<DIV>Thanks and cheers,</DIV>
<DIV>Alice</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Hi Alice,</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Thanks for the rec re: Nesse's "Evolution and the Capacity for
Commitment". Although I still haven't read it I'm familiar with its
contents. The issue of 'commitment' especially for young people is
something that definitely needs addressing and maybe requiring our youth to
make a firm political commitment to a particular party will carry over to
their demonstrating less risky behavior with drugs, sex, employment, family
or whatever. Yet isn't our youth already politically brainwashed into
political awareness or have they flicked away that duty as well? I no
longer hang out with our country's young but when I did I found that very
few had their head screwed on correctly and many were
adrift; from what I hear now they still continue on their
aimless flow. When I wrote my original answer my thoughts were on
"my generation", not the others. Thanks for your post.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I'll add the book to my list.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Gerry</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none">-----
Original Message -----
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: rgb(228,228,228) 0% 50%; moz-background-clip: initial; moz-background-inline-policy: initial; moz-background-origin: initial"><B>From:</B>
<A title=andrewsa@newpaltz.edu href="mailto:andrewsa@newpaltz.edu">Alice
Andrews</A> </DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=paleopsych@paleopsych.org
href="mailto:paleopsych@paleopsych.org">The new improved paleopsych list</A>
</DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Monday, February 21, 2005 8:30 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Paleopsych] Re: paleopsych Digest, Vol 9, Issue
20</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Hi Gerry, </DIV>
<DIV>Randy Nesse edited a book called "Evolution and the Capacity for
Commitment"; do you know it? It's wonderful... if you don't. (His
'Commitment in the Clinic' chapter is superb, btw.) Anyway, I think the
book addresses your question. The word 'commitment' itself addresses the
question. We have evolved mechanisms for detecting commitment and for
detecting possible defection in others. People who tow the party line, etc.
are considered committed. We seek out such people because it is proximately
and ultimately adaptive to do so. Befriending, supporting, trusting, etc.
the uncommitted would have been-- and still is, a risk (or threat).
Such risks could have been very costly over our evolutionary history and can
be still today. Of course, sometimes such risks (siding with someone who
seems to be sitting on the fence, uncommitted, a rebel) can be to one's
advantage. But 'ancient-brain' doesn't know this--and probably
'statistics-brain' doesn't know this either!</DIV>
<DIV>Anyway, enough late-night babbling! It's a good book and might answer
your question...</DIV>
<DIV>All best!</DIV>
<DIV>Alice</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(0,0,0) 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none">-----
Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: rgb(228,228,228) 0% 50%; FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none; moz-background-clip: initial; moz-background-inline-policy: initial; moz-background-origin: initial"><B>From:</B>
<A title=waluk@earthlink.net href="mailto:waluk@earthlink.net">G.
Reinhart-Waller</A> </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"><B>To:</B>
<A title=paleopsych@paleopsych.org
href="mailto:paleopsych@paleopsych.org">The new improved paleopsych
list</A> </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"><B>Sent:</B>
Monday, February 21, 2005 9:55 PM</DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"><B>Subject:</B>
Re: [Paleopsych] Re: paleopsych Digest, Vol 9, Issue 20</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>>> Someone beyond the
liberal/conservative<BR>dichotomy may be rejected by both sides as a
nuisance,<BR>a threat to shared assumptions that define a group<BR>against
another.<BR><BR>This is absolutely amazing! Why would any audience
<BR>reject someone who cannot plop into either the liberal <BR>or
conservative camp? Please explain the threat you <BR>feel is
apparent. This I need to
hear!<BR><BR>Gerry<BR><BR><BR>_______________________________________________<BR>paleopsych
mailing list<BR><A
href="mailto:paleopsych@paleopsych.org">paleopsych@paleopsych.org</A><BR><A
href="http://lists.paleopsych.org/mailman/listinfo/paleopsych">http://lists.paleopsych.org/mailman/listinfo/paleopsych</A></BLOCKQUOTE>
<P></P>
<HR>
_______________________________________________<BR>paleopsych mailing
list<BR><A class=moz-txt-link-abbreviated
href="mailto:paleopsych@paleopsych.org">paleopsych@paleopsych.org</A><BR><A
class=moz-txt-link-freetext
href="http://lists.paleopsych.org/mailman/listinfo/paleopsych">http://lists.paleopsych.org/mailman/listinfo/paleopsych</A><BR></DIV><PRE wrap=""><HR width="90%" SIZE=4>
_______________________________________________
paleopsych mailing list
<A class=moz-txt-link-abbreviated href="mailto:paleopsych@paleopsych.org">paleopsych@paleopsych.org</A>
<A class=moz-txt-link-freetext href="http://lists.paleopsych.org/mailman/listinfo/paleopsych">http://lists.paleopsych.org/mailman/listinfo/paleopsych</A>
</PRE></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>