One horse-laugh is worth ten thousand syllogisms. It is not only more effective; it is also vastly more intelligent.
I don’t want to believe that I live in a society where people have to be embarrassed into changing their minds.
This has been a wonderful thread. It has demonstrated in many ways that many if not most people are not primarily moved by reason or evidence, and are instead moved by the social considerations of their beliefs. Why don’t you want to believe what is manifestly true?
On the rudeness of Dawkins. By the standards of the taboo on criticism of religion, he is rude. That taboo is what keeps the nonsense alive.
By the ordinary standards that other ideas have to live by, he is a perfect gentleman.
Why don’t you want to believe what is manifestly true?
I’m sorry if I was unclear in what I mean by ‘don’t want to believe it.’ I do want to believe things that are true...therefore, if it’s true that humans are more moved by social consideration than reason, then I want to believe that. I don’t like it, but pretending it’s not true won’t change that. But if I had a choice between living in that world, or moving to a world where humans were more swayed by reason than social consideration, I would pick the latter. Just like I’d pick a world without human trafficking and sex slaves in it over a world with them.
This has been a wonderful thread. It has demonstrated in many ways that many if not most people are not primarily moved by reason or evidence, and are instead moved by the social considerations of their beliefs. Why don’t you want to believe what is manifestly true?
On the rudeness of Dawkins. By the standards of the taboo on criticism of religion, he is rude. That taboo is what keeps the nonsense alive.
By the ordinary standards that other ideas have to live by, he is a perfect gentleman.
I’m sorry if I was unclear in what I mean by ‘don’t want to believe it.’ I do want to believe things that are true...therefore, if it’s true that humans are more moved by social consideration than reason, then I want to believe that. I don’t like it, but pretending it’s not true won’t change that. But if I had a choice between living in that world, or moving to a world where humans were more swayed by reason than social consideration, I would pick the latter. Just like I’d pick a world without human trafficking and sex slaves in it over a world with them.