Startling new evidence is revealing the powerful neuroplasticity capability of our brains.

English: Human brain Polski: Mózg człowieka

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The old idea that the brain (thus perhaps a mind set) could not physically change in later life is wrong. Illnesses like OCD, and PTSD can now be successfully treated using computer assisted training to essentially create new neuronal links in the brain. The seminal discoveries are documented in the book “The Brain That Changes Itself” by Doctor Normon Doidge. These new findings pose profound questions for all of us and go to the very roots of our law, science,  philosophy, and culture.

In this respect the new knowledge is as “disruptive” as the theory of evolution. There apparently is a cure for bigotry waiting in the wings and I say that warily because the claim is based on classifying bigotry as a pathology that wants curing.  Bigots are unable to adapt to new information and will not take up a new and more appropriate stance when given the most overwhelming, unambiguous evidence. They are stuck in a rut and are for all intents and purposes they are unable to climb out. The term you often hear is “willful ignorance”, yet it is probably more accurate to call this “inappropriate neuronal pathways”.
Promoters of physical child discipline are a prime example. They are absolutely not going to be reasoned out of their position no matter what. Hard core religious and political conservatives, likewise. However, for the subset of people who realize they might be on the wrong side of an argument there may be treatments that can ameliorate or even eliminate their bigoted views. Dr Doidge does not treat this aspect of his work in great detail because I think a lot of work must be done and treatments for other problems such as OCD and PTSD are more advanced at this stage.
The irony here is that the very aspect of our minds that can make us flexible can also make us inflexible. It all depends upon how the brain has been wired by our experience and learning. In the case of religious bigots, childhood indoctrination is the prime suspect because it occurs during the time children are especially vulnerable to brainwashing.
The promotional text for the presentation Dr. Doidge made in Australia reads:
“Dr. Doidge takes viewers through the latest research into the specific problems exclusive to the human brain, and human condition. And prepare to be amazed: The program interviews UCLA researcher Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz, whose research is giving new hope to people suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. In Montreal, Dr. Doidge meets psychologist Alain Brunet, who is currently developing a neuroplasticity-based treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. And in San Francisco, the program visits with Dr. Sophia Vinogradov, who is making groundbreaking advances in dealing with schizophrenia. Like many other researchers, she’s completely rethinking the current methods of treating schizophrenic patients.
With Dr. Doidge as capable tour guide, the film confirms that long-held belief that the human brain is remarkably resilient and can adapt to almost any situation.”

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Another Journalist Revels in Ignorance about Dominionism

Political Research Associates

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Frederick Clarkson printable version print page     Bookmark and Share
Mon Sep 19, 2011 at 11:00:10 PM EST

In recent weeks, we have seen an odd flurry of articles and conservative op-ed columns attacking a number of authors and journalists who write about the Christian Right.  Religion writer Mark I. Pinsky has issued the latest scurrilous screed, this time in USA Today.  It is remarkable that so much prime real estate on the op-ed pages of the leading newspapers in the country has been devoted to downplaying or denying the significance of dominionism and related subjects, or to seeking to discredit some of us who have written about these things.  So much ink, so few facts. Mr. Pinsky makes three main charges I would like to address.

The first of these is his complaint that left-wing Jewish writers are primarily responsible for critical work about the role of dominionism and Christian Reconstructionism in evangelical Christianity.  Those he names:  Sara Diamond, Michelle Goldberg, Rabbi James Rudin, and Rachel Tabachnick do indeed hail from Jewish backgrounds, but there are many non-Jews, including evangelicals, who have prominently written about these subjects.  I have written extensively about them myself, notably in my 1997 book Eternal Hostility:  The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy.  Chip Berlet, Senior Analyst at Political Research Associates in Somerville, MA has written widely about these things in books and articles.  Although we did not coin the term, he and I  certainly popularized the use of the term dominionism in the early 90s.  But evangelical seminary professors Wayne House and Thomas Ice predated all of our books in this area, in their 1988 book Dominion Theology:  Blessing or Curse?. Steve Clapp wrote an influential feature article in Christianity Today magazine about Christian Reconstructionism in 1987. Bill Moyers did a TV documentary in 1987.  More recently, Rev. Dr. Bruce Prescott a national leader in the moderate Baptist movement published a six-part series (here at Talk to Action) on dominionism based in part on his personal experiences in the right wing takeover of the Southern Baptist Convention; and when the Religious Right, led by a well-known Christian Reconstructionistnamed Steven Hotze, took over the his local Republican Party in Houston in the early 90s.  There are many, many such examples. The fact is that these matters have been prominently written about by journalists and scholars, Christian and non-Christian, evangelical and non-evangelical for decades.  In any case, writing about these things did not begin in 2006 nor has writing in this area been dominated by Jews.

(For a primer on dominionism and Christian Reconstructionism in the context of the current controversy, see Berlet’s essay ”Inside the Christian Right Dominionist Movement That’s Undermining Democracy.”)
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Kidnapped for Christ trailer

Kidnapped for Christ follows the stories of several American teenagers who were sent to Escuela Caribe, an American-run Evangelical Christian reform school in The Dominican Republic.
Category:Film & Animation
Tags:
* Escuela Caribe
* Troubled Teen Industry
* Documentary
* New Horizons Youth Ministry

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What if Islam is true? Sam Harris has some ideas to share.


Childhood religious grooming is unethical and can be emotionally abusive.