But extraordinary claims demand extraordinary proof. And scepticism coupled with the scientific method is
the essential foundation for scientific progress - and is the only real bulwark we humans have against our irrational urges to believe all sorts of wacky things.
That is why Mulder was always wrong in the X-Files. When a person "wants to beleive" something, then their claims that something extraordinary is true are a lot harder to swallow, since they don't generally hold their theses to rigorous standards of proof.
Ok, I'm trying to get off my soapbox.
Oh, one Last thing: Yay for James Randi!
Alarik
EDIT: like a total stoopid head, I wrote "uri geller" when I meant "james randi" - polar opposites. I had a brain fart.
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Gandalf Parker said:
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alarikf said:
Copycats - all it takes is a board and some rope...and you're famous in a twisted anonymous way. Lots of people get off on that sort of thing. Heck, I know I did when I was a kid - used to mess all sorts of things up...
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A lot of people make fake money. Its pretty close, fools a lot of people, then something really tiny is spotted which makes it a fake. That doesnt make me consider all money a fake, especially the ones without the little tell-tales of fakeness. It does make me think that any money I see MIGHT be a fake and hsould maybe be checked out.
Fanaticism is always bad. In this case I would have to say that both extreme belief and extreme disbelief is probably too early to be preaching it.
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