Skepticism, Science & Pseudoscience

Ron Obvious

(6,261 posts)

12. What separates us from the believers

Mon Mar 26, 2012, 12:19 PM

Mar 2012

This is what separates us from the believers, a willingness to cast a cold, sceptical eye over an implausible feel-good story rather than accepting it because we would like it to be true.

"The truth shall set you free"? Not on your life if the believers have any say over it.

"Love like a mother, observe like a bailiff", though I can't remember who said that.

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Supposedly, elephants trekked to a house to mourn a human [View all] DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 OP

I don't know the details of this story... but I wish I'd never read your post... hlthe2b Mar 2012 #1

Because I expressed skepticism? DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #2

because you went out of your way to be ugly and derisive. hlthe2b Mar 2012 #8

I intended to be dismissive and scornful DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #10

Part of being a skeptic is being willing to point out when something is questionable, EvolveOrConvolve Mar 2012 #3

That's exactly it DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #4

So...emotions trump truth? MineralMan Mar 2012 #13

Since when does rudeness & incivility equal truth? hlthe2b Mar 2012 #15

Since you're in this particular group. MineralMan Mar 2012 #16

No... "woo" gets rebutted with facts not by being nasty and demeaning to others. hlthe2b Mar 2012 #17

I'm appalled that so many people MineralMan Mar 2012 #18

If you don't have facts to support your case then this becomes nothing more than hlthe2b Mar 2012 #19

What you see on the Latest page is up to you. MineralMan Mar 2012 #20

It is YOU who is apparently complaining that 'non-group members reply to posts here... hlthe2b Mar 2012 #22

No, I'm not complaining at all. MineralMan Mar 2012 #25

Debunking is fine... Extreme ridiculing and mocking without substantive discussion is .... hlthe2b Mar 2012 #26

I think you should re-read the OP. MineralMan Mar 2012 #29

I went back to reread the OP, and i have to say that I don't see what... eqfan592 Mar 2012 #70

It is not necessary to rebut woo with facts DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #21

Which BOTH sides should do rspectfully and civilly... hlthe2b Mar 2012 #23

Should I be respectful of Mitch McConnell when he says DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #24

Since when is Mitch McConnell a DU member? hlthe2b Mar 2012 #27

It's not at all a straw man DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #28

Mocking and calling out other DU members with intense derision is the issue. hlthe2b Mar 2012 #30

Calling a post absurd is not what calling out a DU member means DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #31

Sorry that you can't be straight forward enough to acknowledge your own behavior. hlthe2b Mar 2012 #32

You're going around in circles and repeating insults DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #33

FWIW... uppityperson Mar 2012 #34

Thanks for posting that. I appreciate it. MineralMan Mar 2012 #35

Someone's going apeshit with the alert button. Ian David Mar 2012 #37

I suppose so. Never mind. MineralMan Mar 2012 #39

You are welcome. I have started doing this, if jury comes back "leave", let the poster know uppityperson Mar 2012 #46

I alerted on you. I lost. I was not wrong. You're being cruel to people for no discernable reason DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #47

Yes, I know you did. MineralMan Mar 2012 #48

You know that I did, because I told you I did. DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #49

Thanks for your reply. MineralMan Mar 2012 #50

"earnest students"? Silent3 Mar 2012 #51

I think they're honest people expressing genuine feeling about a story they read DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #52

A very genuine, honest manifestation of engaging keyboards before engaging brains Silent3 Mar 2012 #53

I know what I define as cruel, and I saw it with MM and another poster DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #54

It's people ever-so-gently treading on this kind of fuzzy-headed thinking... Silent3 Mar 2012 #55

Then you're part of the problem and not part of the solution EvolveOrConvolve Mar 2012 #56

defending reason and sanity is a far cry from riduculing someone for what they believe DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #57

What you don't seem to get... EvolveOrConvolve Mar 2012 #58

and what you don't seem to get, is that I'm using MM's own terminology: ridicule DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #61

There's a rather marked difference between EvolveOrConvolve Mar 2012 #66

Just can't let that go, can you? MineralMan Mar 2012 #59

Why would I let this go when you've invited me several times to peruse your FR posts? DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #60

No. I don't care if your post stays visible. I don't alert on attacks against myself. MineralMan Mar 2012 #62

This isn't off-topic at all DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #63

Look. No context. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to discuss this with you any MineralMan Mar 2012 #64

Then look at the FULL PAGES so you don't lose any CONTEXT DisgustipatedinCA Mar 2012 #65

I was Juror #4. n/t Ian David Mar 2012 #36

Well, in the case of this thread, the woo came from a GD post, MineralMan Mar 2012 #40

BeliefNet, Natural News and Prison Planet poison the blogosphere. n/t Ian David Mar 2012 #41

Yup. That's my opinion, as well. MineralMan Mar 2012 #43

You did good. I read that thread with the same thoughts. immoderate Mar 2012 #5

Because everything is, like, connected to everything else. DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #6

Although elephants DO communicate over vast distances using infrasound. Ian David Mar 2012 #42

Dude, it's like all quantum and stuff. MadrasT Mar 2012 #45

Don't discard this just because it comes from beliefnet. I heard from a friend of a friend dimbear Mar 2012 #7

Hah! DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #9

LOL!! n/t Ian David Mar 2012 #38

If you look really closely, you'll see angels accompanying the MineralMan Mar 2012 #44

What grinds my gears... MadrasT Mar 2012 #11

It's that missing link called critical thinking. MineralMan Mar 2012 #14

What separates us from the believers Ron Obvious Mar 2012 #12

My (now deceased) cat was depressed for a month after my dog died. Odin2005 Mar 2012 #67

I've seen depression in the dogs and cats we've owned DavidDvorkin Mar 2012 #68

Very true, sounds like an exaggeration to me. Odin2005 Mar 2012 #71

I figured the story was harmless if incredible. JDPriestly Mar 2012 #69

Maybe it’s not true, frogmarch Mar 2012 #72