From: Helen Krummenacker avona@jps.net
Have you ever tried looking at people as *animals*?
Constantly. I frequently think about what evolutionary advantages their might be to some human traits, and what ones may just be there because they don't get in the way of survival.
Human evolution is probably overwhelmingly cultural rather than genetic these days. Give it a few more generations and everyone will be allergic to peanuts.
At the same time, I have never felt this impeded my ability to respect how individuals think and express themselves. Loaded with the burdens of language, culture, and genetic predispositions, people still attempt to form beliefs and explain why they believe them.
Of course, and I never meant to imply that they didn't.
Of course, the variations happen within a social framework, but a slow accumulation of individual choices can change social expectations.
Precisely what I argued a couple of days ago.
I'm rapidly getting the feeling that Neil and I mean completely different things when we say someone 'represents' something. If I understand him, he is saying an outsider's interpretation of whaat I represent is part of who I am
Yup
whereas I define myself by what *I* believe I am and represent
Yup
and if someone else interprets me as something else, they are misunderstanding me and that is part of who they are, not who I am.
Nope, that is also part of who you are (though it also defines them).