The Power of the Culture
If anyone doubts the power of culture to influence and even control at times how we think, I invite you to answer the following question, which I got from Halpern, Thought and Knowledge: An Introduction to Critical Thinking, p. 15:

"A young boy and his father went for a Sunday drive. A drunken driver swerved in front of their car, killing the father on impact. The young boy was rushed to the nearest hospital where the chief of neurosurgery was summoned to perform an operation. Upon seeing the boy, the chief of neurosurgery cried out, "I can't operate on him, he's my son!" How is this possible?"