In my frequent discussions about truth/reality, I’m often asked a question of this general sort:
“But which reality? The one about how things actually are, or the one that people perceive or believe?”
It’s a very common point of confusion in our society, yet to me, the difference between the two is like night and day. The definition of reality that I use goes something like this:
Continue reading But WHICH Reality?They tell me not to try—
That I’m wasting my time.
But someone tried with me,
And I am the better for it.
They tell me it’s hopeless,
But I’ve experienced successes myself.
They tell me the people won’t listen,
But I listened.
And after a while of hearing such things,
He who says them begins to seem to me
The stupidest of all—
He who dares to declare for others
A fruitless future
When God himself—
The greatest wisher ever for the good of man—
Has still left them alive
To live in this world of possibility
Yet another day.
The naysayer thinks himself enlightened,
Yet cannot see the darkness in his outlook.
But I will speak to him of it.
I’ll push back for his good.
I don’t believe the others can’t change—
Nor that he himself can’t change
This darkened outlook.
Perhaps he’s mad because
I won’t give up like he has.
Or perhaps he’s simply forgotten
And needs a friendly nudge to remember.
If he sees that they are wrong
Not to listen about other things,
Perhaps he’ll see that he’s
Been so stubbornly wrong himself
Not to listen about this.
So don’t tell me that people can’t change—
That grandest excuse for mankind
In all of history.
Has there ever been a bigger lie?
I know it is a lie because
I have changed.
There’s too little hope in this world.
But I still have some.
And I still remember where I got it.
Perhaps the stupidest thing I’ve done routinely in my life is to try to argue the facts with people who do not care about the facts. To this very day, I still find myself surprised at how someone can be corrected irrefutably, and still insist that he has not been wrong—and at how his reasoning can be demonstrated to be inconsistent, and he doesn’t care. Continue reading The Stupidest Thing
Every once in a while, someone inquires about my “world view”. Here it is:
Earlier today I posted an article and video about a non-Christian scientist who finds some problems with Darwinian Evolution. I also posted a link to my article on a Facebook discussion, where the following noteworthy discussion ensued between a friend of a friend and me. I have added blue color highlights here and there to what the statements I found most worthy of comment, and have made my own comment in red for clarification.
Tony: His [the scientist who disagrees with Darwin] background is mathematics and he’s never practiced in the biological sciences other than some post-doc work. Not exactly the right person to criticize evolution. Continue reading Credentials? Really?
NOTE: The author of this article believes not only that irrational creationists and irrational evolutionists alike are in the wrong, but that there are practically as many of one as there are of the other. The goal of this criticism of Nye, therefore, is not to promote creationism, as many might ignorantly presume, but to criticize irrational argumentation wherever it exists—even when it emanates from a demigod of popular science. I could just as well write a critique of the rhetoric of a famous preacher, and may well do that when I’m finished with this present piece. Continue reading Bill Nye the Science Guy Waxes Unscientific on the Theories of Evolution and Creation
Let me say at the start that this is not an article on the nuts and bolts of logic. No, this is an article about irrational human behavior that I have witnessed with such frequency and over such a long period of time that it seemed best I start writing about it. I’ll be as brief as possible.
Let’s begin with some brief examples of what does not constitute logical proof. Continue reading Understanding What Does Not Constitute Logical Proof
In a recent article, I posed the question “Should I tell you?“, regarding the situation in which I’m pretty sure you’re wrong about something, but am uncertain as to whether you will tolerate a discussion about it. In this present article, I assume that the answer to the previous question is “yes”, and that I’m planning to risk the discussion. This article is about the difficulties that often arise as the intended one-point discussion turns into a veritable “birds nest” of entanglements such as one finds in a backlashed fishing reel.
Here’s what I mean. Continue reading How can I tell you?
If you or anything you care about is being criticized, and if you don’t really care about truth, honor, or self correction, this article lists some strategies you can use to pretend that you are criticism-proof. The stakes are high because a snowballing criticism can be very dangerous to the reputation of a person or group, as well as to the status quo. If you don’t nip it in the bud, you could end up being discredited, fired, shunned, or embarrassed. Perhaps there is money at stake, or perhaps it’s the investment of years of your life that is to be defended. Or it could even be your own sacred view of yourself that is in need of a swift and sure defense. Regardless, if you don’t really care about the truth, but only about the appearance of being in the right, you’re going to want some really good strategies to defend yourself from those who might suggest that there is a better way than the one you currently espouse. The strategies that follow in the list below won’t convince rational people, mind you, but they are apparently very useful for convincing yourself and your irrational audience that you’re OK and that the criticism being launched against your position isn’t worth considering. So if it’s all about you, then you should find this list very helpful. Continue reading How To Be Criticism-Proof
Increasingly popular in the United States is the notion that it is morally (or perhaps otherwise) wrong to “judge” others. And akin to this notion is the notion that it is also wrong to judge anything else. I have been instructed, at one time or another, that any of the following activities are inappropriate: Continue reading The “Judge Not” Fallacies