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<\/a>Sein\u00adfeld\u2019s George Costan\u00adza fret\u00adted about \u201cshrink\u00adage.\u201d But could penis thieves pose a big\u00adger prob\u00adlem? [Cred\u00adit: businessinsider.com]<\/p><\/div>\u201cOne of the prob\u00adlems,\u201d author Frank Bures said in a recent Atlantic<\/a><\/em> inter\u00adview, \u201cis this whole dis\u00adtinc\u00adtion between real and not real.\u201d\n Bures is the author of The Geog\u00adra\u00adphy of Mad\u00adness: Penis Thieves, Voodoo Death, and the Search for the Mean\u00ading of the World\u2019s Strangest Syn\u00addromes<\/em>. His book<\/a> exam\u00adines con\u00addi\u00adtions that the DSM<\/span>\u2011V, a man\u00adu\u00adal used to diag\u00adnose and clas\u00adsi\u00adfy men\u00adtal dis\u00ador\u00adders, terms \u201ccul\u00adture-bound syndromes.\u201d<\/p>\n These con\u00addi\u00adtions are gen\u00ader\u00adal\u00adly observed in non-West\u00adern cul\u00adtures. As the book\u2019s sub\u00adti\u00adtle sug\u00adgests, they include penis theft, which Bures describes as a con\u00addi\u00adtion in which \u201cpeo\u00adple feel like their gen\u00adi\u00adtals are being sucked into their body.\u201d<\/p>\n In his inter\u00adview with the Atlantic<\/em>\u2019s Julie Beck, Bures com\u00adplains that Amer\u00adi\u00adcan psy\u00adchi\u00ada\u00adtry\u2019s clas\u00adsi\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adtion of these con\u00addi\u00adtions as \u201ccul\u00adture-bound\u201d sug\u00adgests that they aren\u2019t real. He believes that our sci\u00adence-based under\u00adstand\u00ading of nature is no more cor\u00adrect and no less cul\u00adtur\u00adal\u00adly bound than that of non-West\u00adern cultures.<\/p>\n To prove his point, Bures tells Beck that \u201cpre\u00admen\u00adstru\u00adal syn\u00addrome doesn\u2019t exist in a lot of places\u201d and sug\u00adgests that it may be \u201crelat\u00aded to Amer\u00adi\u00adcan cul\u00adture.\u201d Beck, who through\u00adout the inter\u00adview was gen\u00ader\u00adal\u00adly sup\u00adport\u00adive of Bures\u2019s point of view, char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adized that as \u201ca very treach\u00ader\u00adous thing to say.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Peo\u00adple might feel like you\u2019re stig\u00adma\u00adtiz\u00ading or dele\u00adgit\u00adimiz\u00ading their expe\u00adri\u00adences,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>What a per\u00adson in our cul\u00adture would feel if you said PMS<\/span> is a cul\u00adtur\u00adal syn\u00addrome,\u201d Bures replied, \u201cis the same thing that peo\u00adple in Nige\u00adria would feel, who\u2019ve had their penis\u00ades stolen.\u201d<\/p>\n And for Bures that reveals cul\u00adtur\u00adal bias root\u00aded in West\u00adern science.<\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>That\u2019s kind of the larg\u00ader nar\u00adra\u00adtive of West\u00adern\u00adiza\u00adtion,\u201d Bures says. \u201cThat once we get the cor\u00adrect sci\u00adence and the cor\u00adrect view of things that these old, prim\u00adi\u00adtive beliefs will all go away\u2026If that was cor\u00adrect, it would imply that we don\u2019t have a cul\u00adture, or that our dis\u00adeases are cul\u00adture-free and that\u2019s obvi\u00adous\u00adly not the case.\u201d<\/p>\n He ticks off a list of con\u00addi\u00adtions that he reck\u00adons are Amer\u00adi\u00adcan cul\u00adture-bound syn\u00addromes: anorex\u00adia, big\u00adorex\u00adia (exces\u00adsive exer\u00adcise), pet hoard\u00ading, wind tur\u00adbine syn\u00addrome (headaches, sleep\u00adless\u00adness and oth\u00ader prob\u00adlems that peo\u00adple attribute to wind\u00admills), chron\u00adic fatigue syn\u00addrome and gluten intolerance.<\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>You feel something\u2019s wrong and you believe it\u2019s caused by these things,\u201d he says, \u201clike gluten or wind tur\u00adbines or hor\u00admones or mag\u00adi\u00adcal spells or some\u00adthing like that. Depend\u00ading on your con\u00adcep\u00adtion of those things, you could have cer\u00adtain symp\u00adtoms that you\u2019re, in a way, kind of gen\u00ader\u00adat\u00ading by believ\u00ading in them.\u201d<\/p>\n My daugh\u00adter has celi\u00adac dis\u00adease<\/a>. Ingest\u00ading gluten trig\u00adgers an autoim\u00admune reac\u00adtion that dam\u00adages her small intes\u00adtine. Her con\u00addi\u00adtion was ver\u00adi\u00adfied by a bat\u00adtery of sci\u00aden\u00adtif\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly valid tests that result\u00aded in a diag\u00adno\u00adsis. When she adheres to a gluten-free diet, the symp\u00adtoms sub\u00adside. When she eats food with gluten, the symp\u00adtoms recur.<\/p>\n For a cul\u00adtur\u00adal impe\u00adri\u00adal\u00adist like me, this is sci\u00aden\u00adtif\u00adic evi\u00addence that celi\u00adac dis\u00adease is, for\u00adgive the expres\u00adsion, \u201creal,\u201d unlike the belief that \u201cthere was a fox spir\u00adit wan\u00adder\u00ading around vil\u00adlages steal\u00ading people\u2019s gen\u00adi\u00adtals at night.\u201d<\/p>\n Not so for Bures, who said, \u201cYou could imag\u00adine that gluten intol\u00ader\u00adance is a way of say\u00ading some\u00adthing is wrong with our diet, our food, dis\u00adap\u00adproval of the West\u00adern diet or some\u00adthing like that.\u201d<\/p>\n Bures\u2019 point of view, though scarce\u00adly more pro\u00adfound than the mus\u00adings of a ston\u00ader, dis\u00adclos\u00ades some of the deep\u00adest con\u00adtra\u00addic\u00adtions of the mod\u00adern Left.<\/p>\n On the one hand, many on the Left regard sci\u00adence as an asser\u00adtion of West\u00adern cul\u00adtur\u00adal suprema\u00adcy. Dis\u00adcom\u00adfort with West\u00adern sci\u00adence is evi\u00addent in antipa\u00adthy among fac\u00adtions on the Left toward vac\u00adcines<\/a>,<\/span> infant for\u00admu\u00adla<\/a> and foods con\u00adtain\u00ading genet\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly mod\u00adi\u00adfied organ\u00adisms<\/a>. It has recent\u00adly become an arti\u00adcle of pro\u00adgres\u00adsive dog\u00adma that a person\u2019s sex is not deter\u00admined by the XX<\/span> and XY<\/span> chro\u00admo\u00adsomes<\/a> and, para\u00addox\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly, that a \u201cgay gene<\/a>\u201d will one day be identified.<\/p>\n On the oth\u00ader hand, the Left embraces sci\u00adence when it can be used as a blud\u00adgeon against West\u00adern val\u00adues and liv\u00ading stan\u00addards. It smears those who reject the ruinous eco\u00adnom\u00adic poli\u00adcies<\/a> advo\u00adcat\u00aded by glob\u00adal warm\u00ading enthu\u00adsi\u00adasts as sci\u00adence \u201cdeniers,\u201d moral\u00adly and intel\u00adlec\u00adtu\u00adal\u00adly akin to those who claim the Holo\u00adcaust nev\u00ader occurred.<\/p>\n Though we all are guilty of such incon\u00adsis\u00adten\u00adcies, this con\u00adtra\u00addic\u00adto\u00adry atti\u00adtude toward sci\u00adence is espe\u00adcial\u00adly prob\u00adlem\u00adat\u00adic for the Left, which views West\u00adern civ\u00adi\u00adliza\u00adtion as the source of \u201cwhite suprema\u00adcy, cap\u00adi\u00adtal\u00adism, and colo\u00adnial\u00adism, and all oth\u00ader oppres\u00adsive sys\u00adtems,\u201d as the Stan\u00adford [Uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty] Dai\u00adly recent\u00adly assert\u00aded in an edi\u00adto\u00adr\u00adi\u00adal<\/a> oppos\u00ading a West\u00adern civ\u00adi\u00adliza\u00adtion course requirement.<\/p>\n Mod\u00adern sci\u00adence and its atten\u00addant tech\u00adno\u00adlog\u00adi\u00adcal advances arose large\u00adly from that wretched civ\u00adi\u00adliza\u00adtion. It has, togeth\u00ader with such notions as lib\u00ader\u00adty, pri\u00advate prop\u00ader\u00adty and the rule of law, helped make West\u00adern soci\u00adeties pros\u00adper\u00adous and free.<\/p>\n Sci\u00adence rests on the premise that we can observe, mea\u00adsure and ana\u00adlyze the world around us; that the\u00ado\u00adries about nature must be sub\u00adject\u00aded to rig\u00ador\u00adous exper\u00adi\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion to deter\u00admine their valid\u00adi\u00adty. It asserts the abil\u00adi\u00adty to study the observ\u00adable uni\u00adverse and dis\u00adtin\u00adguish what is true from what we imag\u00adine to be true. It has through\u00adout his\u00adto\u00adry chal\u00adlenged the most cher\u00adished assump\u00adtions of West\u00adern elites, endur\u00ading Stal\u00adin\u00adist<\/a> show tri\u00adals and papal inqui\u00adsi\u00adtions<\/a>. It doesn\u2019t view \u201cthis whole dis\u00adtinc\u00adtion between real and not real\u201d as a prob\u00adlem, but as cen\u00adtral to its mission.<\/p>\n It con\u00adstrains us to say that celi\u00adac dis\u00adease is real and penis thieves are not .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201c<\/span>One of the prob\u00adlems,\u201d author Frank Bures said in a recent Atlantic inter\u00adview, \u201cis this whole dis\u00adtinc\u00adtion between real and not real.\u201d Bures is the author of The Geog\u00adra\u00adphy of Mad\u00adness: Penis Thieves, Voodoo Death, and the Search for the Mean\u00ading \u2026 Con\u00adtin\u00adue read\u00ading