Did Neanderthals Shape Our Belief Systems of Today?
Controversial British psychologist Stan Gooch was years ahead of his time— but what did he get wrong?
Has Stan Gooch been vindicated?
I think the short answer is yes. Of course, it’s more complex than that.
There should be little doubt that when scientists finally confirmed through DNA analysis that Homo sapiens and Neanderthals interbred to produce “hybrid” children tens of thousands of years ago — a huge glob of retroactive respect should have been heaped upon the legacy of Stan Gooch.
That never happened.
It was Gooch who concluded decades before anyone else that Neanderthals interbred with modern humans.
(Note: To be totally accurate, Gooch said Neanderthal interbred with Cro-Magnon man, and that in turn created modern humans, us — Homo sapiens).
Sadly, Gooch was scorned by mainstream and science academia. He was also dismissed and ridiculed. Perhaps worst of all — he was ignored. Even the 14 books he published sold poorly among a general audience.
Poor Stan Gooch died living in near-poverty and obscurity in 2010. He spent his last days alone in a shabby trailer home, or what the Brits call a “caravan.” By all…
