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Can we blame criminal behavior on our gene set? Some believe so, but if this is the case, than one’s crimes are pre-dispositioned and then we could say that it isn’t their fault, it’s how they were made. This of course opens up Pandora’s Box because we are all supposed to be equal under the law – but how can we be once we admit that we are not ALL EQUAL to start with. That’s a catch-22 for the politically correct isn’t it? Yes, but maybe we ought to discuss this a bit, as it was a topic of conversation at our think tank, where we pride ourselves in knowing; No Topic Is Off Limits. So, let’s talk shall we?
If you ask me personally, well, I’d have to say; yes, I think gene-expression plays a huge part in behavior, especially the ‘quick-to-fight’ ramping up of anger, as those brain chemicals trigger a complete whole-body fight-or-flight scenario. In some people, and some genetic lines much more so than others. In sports, it’s good to be able to call upon that ability, but without personal control, those tendencies can be dangerous, and it takes wisdom, experience and age to do that, exhibit control that is.
Not that I care to let anyone off the hook for violent acts, I can’t and won’t condone any of it, but I understand where it comes from, why it exists, and how humans are challenged with it in the modern world overlay of their natural evolutionary psychology – and some people are more evolved than others in this regard. Also there is a huge difference in men and women due to testosterone levels – men have 10-times that of women.
And even if we leave women out of this discussion herein and only talk about human males, we see that in some cultures, this more evolved personality displacement and behavior may not even to this day be preferable survivable traits. I guess with regards to the ‘blank slate’ theory of the mind in child developmental psychology there will be some disagreement here, but who says it has to be an either/or, as it is clearly both, and I’d say genetics is a huge component to it all. But when it is all said and done, like anything else we are our genetics and our environment – nature and nurture – not just one or the other but a combination.
We see this when we study animals in the wild and in captivity, we see it, observe it and understand it for what it is, yet when it comes to our own species we seem to be afraid to look into that mirror – why?
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