This must be right......

[David Johnson]

I read it in the Daily Mail!!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/ ... acist.html

I feel sure all BGAFD forumites will agree with this study. Eh?

[jimslip]

I suppose it means what you mean as "intelligent". "Rain Man" could be considered highly intelligent because he could remember all the numbers in the phone book. Likewise left wing fanatics are brilliant at reciting party dogma, word perfect, but can they actually originate political thoughts for themelves? No, of course not, even though they are well read and probably have Media Studies degrees!

Unfortunately, "intelligence" in itself does not make a man or a woman, a good person. I'm sure Hitler was very intelligent, so was Stalin, Trotsky and Lenin and what about Pol Pot surely he was well read in the writings of Marx, his intelligence is proven in the mastery of his careful planning of mass murder!

Broadmoor is packed to the brim with highly, "Intelligent" people, but would you really want any of them in charge of the country? The ideal politico is a person who is highly intelligent, has his or her own set of political beliefs, but is also capable of balanced independent thought. I'd say Ken Clark comes to mind, I can't actually think of anyone else off hand....

[David Johnson]

"Likewise left wing fanatics are brilliant at reciting party dogma, word perfect, but can they actually originate political thoughts for themelves? No, of course not, even though they are well read and probably have Media Studies degrees!"

This may be true or not of left wing as well as right wing fanatics. However it has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with the article's validity or otherwise because it hasn't got anything to do with the findings.

The thing to get is -

"The study, by academics at Brock University in Ontario, Canada, used information from two UK studies from 1958 and 1970 , where several thousand children were assessed for intelligence at age 10 and 11, and then asked political questions aged 33."

So at the age of 10 or 11 they were given intelligence tests, not questions about Das Kapital and Mein Kampf or the rights/wrongs of immigration. Then at 33 they were asked questions such as Would you feel comfortable if a family of a different race moved in next door etc.

The authors claim that there is a strong correlation between low intelligence both as a child and an adult, and right-wing politics.

Nevertheless, the report does state "'Clearly, however, all socially conservative people are not prejudiced, and all prejudiced persons are not conservative.

[Gusset Sniffer]

Yes, take a look at those teapotty I mean tea party conservative nutters in the US? Whats with those yanks? Thick or what?

[number 6]

Go back 30 years and ideas that would have been considered extreme right wing are now centrist in america. I heard Ron Paul the other night pretty much saying anyone who doesnt have health insurance doesnt deserve to be treated. This is normal amongst republicans,they see our NHS as far left wing socialism. Dirt in their eyes.

[tuf766]

I couldn't be arsed to read it, it just looks like media brainwashing, i steer well clear.

[David Johnson]

True. Our press is overwhelmingly left wing, particularly the Daily Mail. Hence the story, I guess.

[Gusset Sniffer]

Yes I've spoken to Americans before who can't understand why the Brits have such a backward health system! They argue against healthcare for all !nuts!