I am at a loss as to how we could have regressed like this. At a complete and absolute loss.
As a 90s kid I remember the zeitgeist of the time (and even in the early 2000s) that the world was ever in a forward march and we will never stop going forward…
Holy shit they were not just wrong, but how wrong was scary. I will also never forget how on the internet shortly after 9/11 (albeit those view points predate 9/11) made the whole clash of civilization between the rational and intelligent and scientific west and the barbaric Muslim world that is stuck in the 12th century or something.
They made the then scientific lead of the west a result of a core, rock solid trait of the west that was reached purely through discussion and debate and based only on facts. Meaning it cannot be done away with that quickly.
But barely in the past 15 years (maybe even less) view points that would be seen as an absolute joke became mainstream, and not only that, the same loonies are the ones in charge now. Ironically in the early covid-19 time many were acting all shocked that Muslim countries not only had lock downs and that there was no resistance to them… as if Muslims are in such denial of modern anything that they think they cannot be barred from being sick or something.
And then they claimed that the Muslims morons who DID defy lockdowns and became super spreaders were purely unique to the Islamic world. Never mind the fact that religious people of all stripes (Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians… my god the Christians! Christians Koreans were singlehandedly responsible for making covid-19 a problem in Korea!) Fucked up, they still acted like it was purely a Muslim problem.
I wonder how many of them now even realise just how fucking FAST the entire world order they claim is a deep intrinsic trait is falling apart.
I think you will enjoy this recent episode of the This Machine Kills podcast.
We discuss Quinn’s analysis of “new fusionism” or a mutant strain of neoliberalism that crystallized in the 1990s, which sought to ground and defend neoliberal policies through their own bastardization of biological sciences — cognitive, behavioral, evolutionary, genetic, and so on. They then used scientism to justify and propagate political ideas and economic models based on hardwired human nature and hierarchical differences between races, cultures, and intelligence. The fringes of the 1990s have now become the mainstream of the 2020s.
Fuck me. Except now they are anything BUT scientific. And if I remember correctly (and i have to rely on 20+ years old memories since none of those old forums were archived anywhere) many of the people posting probably had no idea where their own ideas came from, which would explain a lot.
I’m sorry, where did this guy get his relevant PhD(s) again?
Sounds like we’re going back to the “four humors:”
The “four humors” are a classical theory, developed by ancient Greek physicians like Hippocrates, that suggests human personality and health are determined by the balance of four bodily fluids: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. An excess or deficiency of these humors was believed to influence both temperament and susceptibility to illness.
This theory was influential in ancient and medieval medicine, influencing how people understood and treated illness and even personality. While no longer considered a scientifically valid theory of human health, it’s a significant part of the history of medicine and offers a glimpse into ancient philosophical and medical thinking.
Except now we are actually using a contemporary version of it to rule our health care system.
Let’s bring back blood letting and leeches. For health reasons.
Modern medicine still uses leeches:
Cool.
