Stretching Flywire Over Your Brain

I love little scientific buzzwords, because when you drop them, you sound clever. I also love them because sometimes they sum up an idea very well and it saves me the trouble of explaining things. My favourite phrase lately has been "genetic leash" which I learned from a wonderful YouTube video where a man of science attempts to enlighten an unashamed young earth creationist. Not only does it sound cool, but it's also a pretty nifty concept to know.
There are certain things that a functioning society cannot abide if it hopes to remain stable and self-propagating. The obvious one is murder. As a society, members cannot kill off more than the number of people being born subtract the number of natural deaths and accidents. If they do, the society ceases to be able to function and it will collapse. It's obvious, then, why we've evolved to want to avoid killing members of our tribe; it's beneficial to the propagation of the species to not kill anyone who looks at you funny.
Interestingly enough, lying has a limit. That is to say, if a clan or species starts to communicate more false or useless information than true or useful ideas, the very act of communication becomes pointless, ideas cannot be shared and the society regresses. According to sociobiologist E. O. Wilson (regarded as the expert in this field and the inventor of the term "genetic leash"), the human mind is shaped as much by genetic inheritance as it is by culture. Given that it's beneficial for people to be honest and believe those close to them, it suddenly becomes clear why a surprisingly large number of people have no bullshit filter to speak of.
Snap forward to the modern day, and we've got slick advertising execs, giant religions and salesmen on every corner. The trusting nature imprinted in our brains is now a weapon for cheap charlatans. People are so willing to believe what they are told that they will commit themselves to the most ridiculous things, out of comfort, hope or just blind trust. It has been demonstrated that, in even the simplest computer simulations, lying or cheating to get ahead of the competition exists, but if a species is naturally trusting as well as intelligent enough to formulate intricate lies, all bets are off.
Where am I going with this? Pretty simple: Get yourself a goddamn bullshit filter! Everyone! I know it's nice to think that people aren't out to get you, but the simple fact of the matter is, a few people are. This isn't to say you shouldn't treat people right, but get savvy up in this piece, folks. If you don't have a naturally good bullshit filter, just assume EVERYTHING is a lie or a scam until you know better, do a bit of reading or research and it'll develop. My wish for this new year is that we're all a bit less gullible.
And with that, I leave you with this; do you believe anything you can't explain? If you do, think long and hard about it. Do some soul searching and figure out exactly where it's coming from. Also, don't steal my fucking television!