our instincts tell us to steal, cheat, lie, in some cases rape
That's not really so clear. Consider the recent experiments that are pointing to certain ingrained universal notions of morality. At this point, the nature/nurture jury is still very out on which bits of violence and morality are "natural", and which are cultural.
But really: I'm suspicious that formal education will help in this case. I think a deeper level of education is needed -- at the cultural/ritual/religious level, not the intellectual one. I could imagine that happening, though...
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Date: 2008-10-10 03:10 am (UTC)That's not really so clear. Consider the recent experiments that are pointing to certain ingrained universal notions of morality. At this point, the nature/nurture jury is still very out on which bits of violence and morality are "natural", and which are cultural.
But really: I'm suspicious that formal education will help in this case. I think a deeper level of education is needed -- at the cultural/ritual/religious level, not the intellectual one. I could imagine that happening, though...