Leftism, Libertarianism and IQ
Fri September 26th, 2003 16:25 MSTIn Dissecting Leftism, Dr. John Ray attacks the claim that the Leftism of college professors is the outcome of their high intelligence. He counters that Mensa, whose only membership requirement is an IQ in the top 2%, has a disproportionately Libertarian membership.
There is another explanation for the initial leftism of many academics in the US, although it doesn’t explain the universality of the trend across the free world: many leftist professors became academics to legally avoid service in the Vietnam War, and of course their leftism provided a rationalization for their unwillingness to serve. This same phenomenon is partly responsible for the strong leftward tilt of the US clergy.
Intelligence and Utopianism
However, I would suggest that high intelligence makes people more susceptible to utopian ideologies, because pondering utopian ideologies is more attractive to people with good imaginations and an inclination to discuss ideas. And, since utopias are disconnected from reality testing, it provides an endless area for discussion, or for academics, publishing. Also, in a world where privilege and economic success is becoming more and more significantly determined by one’s IQ (and to a significant degree, the IQ of one’s parents), a person with high intelligence is less likely to have experienced the serious vicissitudes of life, which might lead to less utopian leanings.
Libertarianism is a utopian philosophy in the same sense as Leftism. In their pure form, both fail to take into account human nature, and hence provide insufficient social prescriptions. Ayn Rand, an influential philosopher for many Libertarians, is interesting in that she was a very intelligent academic, proposed a utopian philosophy, but lived a personal life that violated the notions of human nature that her own ideas required.
I’m a (somewhat) libertarian conservative, after having been a libertarian for a number of years. I missed the Leftist trap by having experienced the results: visiting East Berlin in the sixties and being a member of the Navy (a communist life style); also just by paying attention to world events! And, if you believe Dr. Ray (who knows a whole lot about these things), my conservatism is also somewhat inherited from my (less) conservative parents.
Guess what…. most successful businessmen I have met (and my career has been in the private sector) tend not to be utopians, but rather are politically relatively moderate. They do, however, tend to be quite intelligent.
Note: the implied assertions that genetics makes a significant contribution to IQ and that IQ is a good measure of general intelligence are solidly established science.
Those who cannot do teach…
Those who cannot teach, teach PE.
It’s absurd to suggest that the elitist exclusivity of the leftists that dominate American education is a result of their superior intellect… they only have themselves to compare themselves to.
Everybody in the private sector actually making money in a competitive environment haven’t the time for such indulgences as ‘excluding’ talent.
Note that I am not praising the superiority of utopian ideologies. I think that Leftism is a cognitive disorder.
But I have noticed, as has John Ray, that professors tend towards the left - frequently hard left, and Mensans tend towards libertarianism.
So that’s two sets of intelligent people (not necessarily correct or successful people, I hasten to add) who have an excess of utopians among them.
Blast from the Past
For readers who haven’t seen this, here’s a Murtaugh post from almost a year ago that had me rolling in the aisles by the end: Responding to my recent post about genetics and IQ, Calpundit Kevin Drum wrote a very…
you moron.. your page states : Watching Those Whom Lenin Called “Useful Fools”
That phrase is attributed to STALIN, not Lenin. It is probably doubtful that Stalin even used it, it sounds very contrived.. Anyways, I guess Libertarians have an aversion to checking their sources.
Usually, when a comment starts out with an insult, it is followed with falsehoods and wrong assumptions.
Lenin used the term in 1921 in an interview.
Here is but one of many sources that you could easly have found on the internet. The following is a partial translation:
L.Trotskogo’s book ” Lessons of October ” has caused a storm among its colleagues on a party. Refutations in newspapers fell down. L.Trotskogo accused of lie. No, it did not accuse of cynicism and absence of morals. Nobody denied ” bolshevistskie methods of work ” and did not reproach, that it spoils the Party and e yo the Central Committee. Trotskogo accused that it attributed all merits to itself(himself).
That the reader did not have illusions and that there was no impression, that L.Trotsky was the unique cynic among this company, I shall result here expression of the leader of bolsheviks of V.I.Lenina. V.Lenin named ” useful idiots ” those who ” wanted to be deceived “. It is not necessary to think, that all ” wanted to be deceived “. Were also such which did not want to be deceived and warned of danger bolshevistskogo revolution. Moreover, even among bolsheviks were such which strongly doubted of success of revolution and capture of authority. Two members of the Central Committee of a party of bolsheviks Lion Kamenev and Grigory Zinovev one week prior to revolution have published clause in the newspaper. They have told about the confidential decision of the Central Committee to seize power and even have named date
BTW… I am not a Libertarian.
Maybe you should do a little research.