Parasitic Mind: How Infectious Ideas Are Killing Common Sense

The simplest way to explain Saad's book is to say that it is an informed argument against wokeism. Saad shows the multifaceted assault on society by the cultural elites that have taken political correctness to new levels of idiocy. Saad approaches the cultural dilemma from a scientist's point of view and from a basic reasonable perspective. Additionally, Saad has a sense of humor and a sarcastic edge that alleviates any textbookishness or bore from his writing. Anyone who has watched one of his videos from the safe space under his desk knows his humor and cutting wit. I have listened to several podcasts featuring Saad, so I have heard much of this content from his previously; however, it is articulated and codified well in this book to inform and entertain. Most of all, this book encourages readers to speak up and stand up for what we know is true and right. It is a worthy read during these times. One note of ironic criticism is Saad's approach to evolution v. creationism or intelligent design theories. He seems to apply the cancel culture process that he undermines in this book to academics or people in general that disagree with natural evolution / Darwinism without any room to disagree with his view that is popularly promoted among academics. However, there is a strong case to be made for intelligent design of the universe over and against natural evolution, especially in light of an ever increasing amount of fine tuning evidence. In this case, Saad has a huge blind spot from what I have gathered.

Dr Saad is a human diamond! Rare, unique, brilliant and precious. Everyone who can read should read this book. Clear thought processes. Rational and reasoning mind. Keep writing Dr. Saaad!

He has a great story and he makes sense. Everyone would be better off by reading this. It's helped me understand a lot!

A few days ago, my introduction to you happened via your Epochtimes interview. I liked what I heard and picked up The Parasitic Mind ("TPM"). Much of what you say resonates with me. I especially appreciate your ideals of freedom and truth. A disconnect I'm having is with your presentation of "truth." After perusing TPM, I used Kindle's search function on "truth," "science," a few other words, etc., to dig out your stated ideal. This is what I’m seeing: General p11 the truth ideal defense of truth uncover the truth p12 quest for truth p13 true knowledge pursuing and defending truth p18 objective truths fundamental truths search for truth positive context p1 reason, science and logic p12 This is precisely why science is so liberating. It offers a framework for auto-correction because scientific knowledge is always provisional. An accepted scientific fact today might be refuted tomorrow. As such, the scientific method engenders epistemic humility. p13 scientific truth p19 truth and science evidentiary rules of science and logic p20 commitment to reason and the scientific method commitment to reason, science and the values of the Enlightenment p23 the truth as he (scientist) sees it only one thing matters and that is the facts p24 scientific testing p29 facts and not feelings p30 evidentiary threshold for uncovering scientific truth truth or falsehood of one's position p38 scientific facts p56 scientific truths and natural laws p60 only one truth and we find it through the scientific method p63 truth and adherence to reality p66 theory of evolution - a scientific truth that is as incontrovertible as the existence of gravity p71 self-evident truths p72 objective universal truth p143 empirical truth p145 pantheon of core knowledge p153 universally true negative context p14 anti-science lunacy p16 science denialism p19 pet ideology one's dogma p21 shackles of the thought police anti-intellectualism, anti-reason, anti-science and anti-liberal sentiment p23 deeply held beliefs p28 forbidden knowledge p29 political correctness p57 no revealed truths in science p66 political or religious beliefs p69 knowledge is relative (no objective truth) p71 my truth p82 banal scientific truths p142 truth of his beliefs p20 cultural and moral relativism iffy p169 Tribe of Truth negators p12 This is precisely why science is so liberating. It offers a framework for auto-correction because scientific knowledge is always provisional. An accepted scientific fact today might be refuted tomorrow. As such, the scientific method engenders epistemic humility. p66 One’s political or religious beliefs cannot supersede accepted scientific knowledge (though we must remember that such knowledge remains provisional and open to falsification) It seems to me that you are championing "truth" - specifically of the "objective" sort. You reject "relativism" culturally and morally. Your main argument seems to be that objective truth is only "scientific" in nature. Yet, by stating unequivocally that such knowledge is always provisional, aren't you then saying that scientific knowledge is likewise "relativistic" ultimately? If not, how then is "scientific" truth objective? p76 Since postmodernism purports that reality is subjective, one person’s parody is another’s gold mine of meaning. With this epistemological sleight of hand, postmodernists are able to extract meaning from the most meaningless of texts. p129 Before I delve into some of these supposed causes, it is worth noting that the obfuscation starts with the use of fantastical euphemisms and misdirection in referring to the terror attacks. There was a time, not very long ago, when “absolute truth” was culturally, morally and scientifically acceptable. Concomitantly, the primary way the West thought about “truth” was as antithesis, allowing for “absolute truth.” In the late 18th, early 19th centuries, European intellectuals embraced a new methodology, sometimes referred to as Hegelian dialectic, a system wherein truth is no longer based on antithesis but on synthesis. This came out of the emerging humanist enlightenment – which placed man as the ultimate authority, supplanting the Church (God and absolute truth), i.e., no God, no revelation. Chapter 2, opens with the Geivett/Shermer debate on the existence of God. Geivett’s view of truth is clearly antithesis. Shermer, not so obviously – dialectic/synthesis. Whether there is a God or not was not settled by Shermer’s levity. But, Shermer apparently succeeded with his sleight of hand / misdirection and obfuscated the question of methodology. Jesus’ words from John’s gospel “the truth will set you free” are given in a context. “My teachings” v31, “speak just what the Father has taught me” v28, “and what I have heard from him I tell the world” v26. Jesus’ “truth” that sets free are not the facts of a scientific methodology. Jesus says they are “revealed truths”passed on from God through him. These are “truth claims” – not “the folklore and mythology of indigenous people.” However, if tribalism (Tribe of Truth) becomes acceptable consider that your kinsman, Paul, said “What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.” (Romans 3:1) As you pointed out, “because scientific knowledge is always provisional. An accepted scientific fact today might be refuted tomorrow” ultimately means that if ”science” is your only source, your journey will never arrive at your ideal. Looking for a stronger and better you!

I am a 23 year old YouTuber with over 2M subscribers - my job is the internet. As you could imagine, most of my friends and the online communities I am a part of are VERY progressive. I also marched in the BLM protests and posted the black square, donated to the Minnesota Freedom Fund and supported the hashtags. I am super interested in mental health and wellness, the environment, and making our world a better place - I have very progressive hopes for Earth. As 2020 went on, I began to REALLY SEE and REALLY HEAR what people of the progressive mob were doing and saying. I began to realize what I was supporting, what ideas I was getting behind. It made me super uncomfortable and SUPER afraid to speak out about it due to the fear of being cancelled online. This book could not have come out at a better time and I was HOOKED once I began reading, mainly because it was the antidote to the chaos I had found myself surrounded by. The Parasitic Mind has done for me what a map does to a sailer in new waters. Politics and ideological concepts are generally out of my realm of expertise but my career and 2020 forced me in, and I followed along with what sounded right by my compass. This book has allowed me to refine my thoughts, perceptions, and ideological direction towards a logically brighter future than the one the mob has been pushing so hard. Gaad has wonderfully explained the situation happening not only in the campuses and businesses, but also on social media. Online forms of communication rule our perception and opinions of the world, especially when people we look up to get behind specific causes. I feel a sense of responsibility as a person of influence to spread ideas and back causes that ACTUALLY are good and create real positive change. The Parasitic Mind is the perfect guide for that! I look forward to more follow up interviews and eventual intellectual debates from Gaad on this book. The ideas presented are rock solid, and definitely more solid than any idea I've seen forcefully bullied in by the mob. 10/10 read!

Outstanding and insightful read. For a heavy topic, this was entertaining, informative and easy reading. I highly recommend this book!

If you are interested in the culture of academia at the current moment and curious how “woke” and radical ideologies have spread like wildfire into the minds of so many students and university instructors, then this book is a must read! Gad Saad’s style may not be for everyone (it’s not dumbed down easy reading for the masses) but for those who like reading detailed arguments infused with a healthy dose of discussion on evolution, then you will enjoy this book! You also do NOT need to agree with everything Dr. Saad says to find this book valuable: that is the whole point! In trying to show that universities have become a bastions for uniform thought in which opinions that do not conform to whatever the liberal norm of the day is are not welcome, Gad Saad can occasionally go out on a deep end to make some incendiary points. I do agree with about 90% of what he says (section on Bret Kavenaugh though a hard one to stomach for me); and, that is enough. I also have learned a lot about radical Islam from this book and Dr. Saad makes some harsh points against this ideology (using evidence to back himself up) that I think almost no other academic would be willing to make today. But best part of book is this: Gad Saad is funny! He has a sharp mind and natural knack for sarcasm—and this comes across on every page.

If you already have a parasite in your mind, you will hate this book and unfortunately it probably won’t cure you. I agreed with most of it and found it well written. From all accounts Gad is an atheist and may explain the feeling that something was missing in his arguments. It’s hard to pin down. It’s like he was dancing around a pole but denies the pole exists. If Gad had been born 2000 years ago in Galilee, I’d bet money he would have been a follower of that radical rabbi Yeshua. All in all a good read and I was a bit Saad when it ended. (Sorry)

This is an important and very readable book that I bought after seeing it recommended by Elon Musk, yes, really by Elon Musk! In The Parasitic Mind, author Gad Saad reveals how gender ideology actually originated in academic circles. Just because something is promoted by an academic does not mean it is factual. The title of the book refers to how a theory can become a belief that functions like a mind virus and spreads its infection.

The book is a big disappointment as it presents the views of an anti-science and anti-common sense person. It’s all sounds like the kind of stuff that one hears nowadays from Trumpian “conservatives”, alt-right or downright neo-fascists. It’s a waste of money and time to read silly propaganda like that.

Understand your enemy is the first step to become the honey badger you deserve to be. Fight fight fight. Rage against the dying of the light.

Love the author anyway. Very vocal on this issue without fear or censure. A must read.

Book review of The Parasitic Mind: How Infectious Ideas Are Killing Common Sense by Gad Saad Dr. Gad Saad is one of the most fearless public intellectuals of our time. Born in Lebanon and now a professor at Concordia University in Canada, Saad is a marketing scholar and evolutionary behavioural scientist who pioneered the application of evolutionary psychology to consumer behaviour. Beyond academia, he has become widely known as a defender of reason, free inquiry, and intellectual courage in an age increasingly hostile to dissent. His 2020 book The Parasitic Mind: How Infectious Ideas Are Killing Common Sense is both a diagnosis and a warning. Saad’s central thesis is that societies can be infected by “idea pathogens”, which are belief systems that spread through institutions and public discourse while undermining truth, reason, and open debate. These ideological “mind viruses” often originate in universities and then migrate into media, politics, and corporate life... Drawing on evolutionary psychology, philosophy, and cultural commentary, Saad examines how these parasitic ideas take hold. He critiques dogmas that elevate feelings over facts, reward victimhood narratives, and suppress free speech through social pressure and institutional conformity. The book also explores phenomena such as political correctness, ideological uniformity in academia, and the moral intimidation that discourages honest debate. Yet the book isn't merely critical; it's also prescriptive. Saad argues that the antidote to idea pathogens lies in intellectual resilience: commitment to evidence, scientific reasoning, and the courage to defend free expression. Readers are encouraged to cultivate critical thinking and resist ideological tribalism. Who will benefit most from reading The Parasitic Mind? Students, academics, journalists, policymakers, and anyone concerned about the health of Western intellectual culture will find it particularly valuable. It's also an excellent entry point for readers interested in the intersection of evolutionary psychology and contemporary cultural debates. My overall assessment is that The Parasitic Mind is a provocative, sometimes confrontational, but deeply important book. Saad writes with clarity, wit, and a sense of urgency. You don't have to agree with every conclusion to see that this book performs a vital function: it challenges readers to defend reason, intellectual diversity, and the pursuit of truth in a time when these values are increasingly contested. In short, this is a book that encourages intellectual courage; and that alone makes it well worth reading...