Thomas Ramey Watson

Alternate Reality

The Fundamentalist Christian Chokehold On America

The fundamentalist chokehold on American politics seeks to destroy the religious and cultural plurality on which the country, and the Declaration of Independence, was based. These theological divisions – which pit believers against non-believers, and those who believe correctly against those who don’t – are a major contributor to America’s sharply divided politics. When someone …

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The Brains Of Psychopaths May Be Wired Differently Than Yours Or Mine

Better understanding of how psychopaths’ brains work could pave the way for better treatments. In particular, approaches to addressing other disorders characterized by impulsive decision-making might be worth a look. For example, the ventral striatum is also overactive when people with substance use disorder are exposed to drug stimuli. Strategies aimed at changing their behavior …

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This vision of the world reduces everything to a battle between good and evil, between God and Satan.

From Pope’s Confidantes Pen Blistering Critique Of Steve Bannon’s View of Christianity: Spadaro and Figueroa accused this group of misinterpreting verses in the Bible to fit their own political stances on a wide range of topics ― from war-mongering to climate change to the idea of America as a “promised land” that is to be …

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Bannon, Deconstruction, v. meaningful readings of texts and life

Steve Bannon’s love of Deconstructionism has got me thinking that a good dose of traditional sign theory, which dominated Western culture for centuries, would be in order, even if people are not believers. It argues that we can make sense of texts by careful readings, believing that they–and by extension, our lives–have meaning. When I …

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