Metalpeter's blog: "Peters Thoughts"

Taught Vs. Learned

So I admit that I’m guessing this will sound better in my head then on the web, often thoughts do.   One thing the Web is great for is political debate.   Hey who doesn’t like to get into these debates they can often be fun.  Religious debates can get pretty interesting also.  That being said there is really no reason for these debates.  The fact is that most people’s minds and ideas aren’t going to change based on something that is said.  In issues that are only cultural maybe they will change but that is unlikely.    The reason for this is that the majority of everyone’s opinion is already set.   They feel something and use facts that they know to back up their own Ideas.   It should be the other way that they look at all the facts and then use that as how to form their opinions but it isn’t.  

Question?

Why do you Believe in the god that you do?

Why do you think that some things are right and others are wrong?

Why do you have certain stereotypes either good or back about others?

Why do you view the world the way in you do? 

Answer:

  Every thing you believe you where taught or learned on your own or based on things that happened but most things you where taught in some way.

The Best example is belief in God.  I’m not bashing god here.   If you prey to Mecca or won’t eat a cow because it is Sacred the majority of the time it is because that is what your Parents or family taught you.   If your family takes you to a Southern Baptist Church you are a Southern Baptist.   It isn’t like you can go “Mom lets go to the Anglican Church up the road and see how they think”.  Most kids wouldn’t think of it.  Yes this isn’t true all ways in multi faith families but that is more about what you learn and currently I’m writing about be taught.  As one grows up they are taught the ideas of the church or lack there of that they go to.   If the family watches football and says stuff like Why is Warner preying …  Then Kids are taught of the lack of god or at least the lack of Warner’s Good. 

Morals are not only taught through Faith.  Most People wind up having the same Political outlook as the people who raise them.   As adults or even as Babies having Babies you pass your ideas onto your kids.  I don’t have a good example for this really.   The one I will use is how one treats others is a big factor.    If someone in front of you drops their wallet the next thing you do will teach the kid different things.  If you yell sir you dropped your wallet, you teach them honesty and looking out for others.   Now if you pick up the Wallet and take a couple dollars as a reward for your self, then you are teaching them that it is ok to help people if it also helps you.    Then if you do some version where you keep the contents and don’t tell the person at all you show them that it is ok to get over on others, or that steeling is ok.   What is even worse is if you take the credit card and then you both go shopping on some else’s money and max it out or empty the bank account. 

In Terms of stereotypes I don’t only mean racial stereotypes.  Yes those are the ones that most people think of.   But those extended to more then just race , gender, sex, sexual orientation , Religious beliefs, national origin, how someone looks and even how they talk.    All kinds of people teach these and they are very common in families.    There are so many I don’t even know where to start.   Some comments are so small that you don’t even notice them yourself.  If someone thinks they got ripped off they go “Oh They Jewed Me”.  There are so many examples of these but the point is that these stereotypes are taught in little ways and big ways and so most kids wind up thinking like how their parents think.  

I will admit Political views are more complex and it is tough to say how parents out look on life effects their kids.  Again though I say parents but it is more then just them who teaches Kids what to think.   For people who protest and take their kids to them as well that we can agree shapes how there kids think.  I won’t go as far as saying Parents brain wash their kids.  But through daily interaction ok so maybe for some once a week, but the point is still the same.  Kids learn so much when they are young and take in a lot so they get the same beliefs as there parents and this was true of the kids parents also.  That is why things like racism stay around for so long.    I also think that what stereotypes (again both good and bad) tie in and intertwine with ones political views.     The best example I can think of is that if you have stereotypes about what it is like to be gay, you are more likely to think gay marriage is wrong.     

I Admit one thing about a blog is you never know if anyone is really reading it or not.  But for anyone who is this is where my thoughts I think get more interesting but maybe that is Just me.  Remember I said taught vs. learned.  There is a big difference.   I will use school as the example to start this off, not sure where it will go.  On a side note a bit any of you who went to high school with me remember how bad I was in English I can’t believe I write blogs back then I would have never believed it.   That makes the perfect example.  Yes my grammar is still bad I have no idea why all those green lines show up.  everyone goes to class is taught by a teacher.   But just because you are taught stuff doesn’t mean you learn it.   If you did then every kid would get a 100% or an A+ in every class.   Hey How would a College decide who to pick, HA.   Different people learn differently.    Some people can go to class and never open a book and remember it.  But some people don’t learn by hearing they learn by reading or by writing things out in notes.    Not only do people learn differently in school but this is true in life as well.

It is really scary how much people can learn in school and I don’t mean  just in high School I mean at all levels.    Often this things that are learned at school conflict with what home and the world teach you and that is where things get really interesting.   I can admit I don’t really know how ones mind decides what things are the truth, I would tend to think that what you learn out in world is the strongest.  You live it and you know it and it is real, it isn’t just an idea.  But in terms of ideas I’m not sure how that works.  Well that is what is coming up next.   

I’ll use the racial stereotypes as an example.  Lets say at home you hear N this and N that.  I think we all know what N means.   But then you get to College or a big high school and those people are “The Cool Kids” They have the parties and they not what you where taught at home.   There is this conflict between what you where taught and what school is teaching you so over time you learn what the truth is to you.  Sometimes it happens the other way around.  Now maybe after you leave school and get out into the world you get a job or what ever and meet more people and at that point you might learn some other version of what people are like.   Again what happens to you sometimes causes you to learn that what you thought before was correct and sometimes that it was wrong.

 This is not only true for racial stereotypes, It is true for many stereotypes.   I guess the best example I can use is homosexuality.    I won’t use the example of the girl who finds out in College she also likes to have fun with girls when she is drunk.   But before I do that, I will admit I have no idea what it is like to be gay and I can’t even imagine what it is like.   That being said I don’t remember what my views on it was when I was young.   But when kids are young they call each other fags and stuff like that.   So I’m guessing for a lot of people you have this negative view of it.  I wasn’t one of the people who thought it is a sin being gay means you are going to hell.  But there are people like that or people who think yuck.     Yes to me it does still seem weird.  But at least for me once you meet people who are gay, you see they really are no different then you.  It isn’t like I heard “oh can I……..” but maybe for some people that happened and that is why they don’t get along with them.    I think that if more people who don’t like homosexuals knew some they would learn that they are just like them.   I know I learned that.  I don’t know as I ever thought they where any different or if I even really knew what it was. 

I admit I’m out of practice of writing long things so my mind is run out of examples.  But learning from the world is not all ways how people learn.  Yes some times they learn things from the people who bring them up based on what those people do.        The Best example I can give isn’t really concrete but hopefully people will get it (assuming anyone is even reading this).   Sometimes parents lead a life in a way that the kids find is screw up or makes no sense.  In this case the messages that are taught often get learned to be the other way by the kids.   

One example would be if you teach your kid that hardwork is how to live ones life.    I think it is.  At work you need to give it your all.   But if the parent(s) is working so much that the kid never sees them, they may get the idea that screw this when I have a kid I want to spend time with them.   One idea that is close to this is work hard then party harder.    Hey you work hard then come home and grab a bottle kid is going to learn one of two things.   Dad worked his ass off so now he can relax (then you where taught that) or the kid is going to learn from seeing that isn’t a good way to live that, that is a bad idea.  I’m not going to factor in that people wind up doing later in life what they know that would be a different discussion but it does kinda tie in here.  For example kids who are beat and hate it wind up beating their kids often because that was what they know.  But some learn that isn’t the way to go.   This is very true with women who keep dating abusive men.  It isn’t that they like it, but it is what they know.   That is really a different topic.  

I lost my train of thought a bit.  But what I will close with is feel free to add your ideas to this.  In other words add a comment or two.   I do think that people are taught things and also learn things through life.  But that what is learned  is part of what is taught even when it is in conflict.   Once someone has an idea on a certain subject then that is what they think and unless life shows them something different then that idea will never change.    I also think that all political/social commentary and debates are done from the idea backwards.  In other words I have an idea and the facts and ideas I use to support it are just my way of saying why I agree with this idea.   They aren’t why I think this way.  I learned to think this way these facts are just a way to support that.   If my thoughts where based on the facts then different facts (to be a fact for this point it doesn’t have to be proved what a fact is, is very debatable) would change peoples thoughts.   On a side note I stayed away from the drug debate on purpose way to complex with legal and illegal and scripts and stuff.  My last example is the gay issue.  One thing I have heard read is that homosexuality is not normal and not natural.   The counter point is haven’t you heard there are gay animals and people can “ “ the nature show where they saw gay animal sex [in an educational not porno way get the mind out of the gutter].   That fact should be enough to at least get people to rethink their thoughts but it doesn’t.     As a final note I remember being with my uncle and seeing a cool bumper sticker that said “Don’t believe everything you Think”. But most people do and for that reason real debate on line and off line can never really achieve much.   It would be nice if it could.