The Illusion of Superiority

by Coded Logic 47 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Phizzy

  " who don't seem to understand even the most basic tennants of logic." Who do these tennants pay rent to ? or did you mean tenets ?

  I think the basic point you make in the O.P, that we needn't pat ourselves on the back for being such smartarses that we woke up to TTATT has been made by me and many others when we let out the plaintive cries on here "Why did it take me so long to see it was all crap?" and "How could I have been so stupid ?" etc etc (One from me especially was "My kids worked out it was crap when they were teenagers, it took me till I was nearly 60!")

  I realised soon after finding this Site that I was woefully ignorant about so much, I had lived a whole lifetime in the JW Bubble of Ignorance.

  I set out from then on to educate myself, and to teach myself the arts of Logical and Critical Thinking, along with other skills denied to the JW's.

  I find it strange that once given the freedom to do so, a few others on here evidently do not, the questions asked, and opinions given by some show a lack of self-education which it takes little effort to achieve with the use of the Internet.

  Learning is a joy, if any have the intellectual lazy streak encouraged, well enforced, in JW's still hanging on, then get rid of it, whatever effort you expend in reading and learning will be repaid at least tenfold.
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  tornapart

  All I can say is that I've reached my middle years without even realising I'd been completely deluded. Yes, I always thought I was reasonably intelligent (as much as the next person) but to realise you've allowed yourself to be totally deluded doesn't make you feel too good about yourself. Do I feel superior? Not at all! I also think most others on here feel that way too.

  Maybe it would be interesting finding out what logic is but there's too many other interesting things to find out about to be bothered. Sorry!
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  yadda yadda 2

  For most subjects discussed on this forum, it's not necessary to learn all those things you list, which are more for serious philosophical analysis.

  What's more important for the average, non-philosophical person in thinking about matters of religion/spirituality/truth in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses in particular, which is the predominant theme of this forum, is to learn fundamental critical reasoning/critical thinking skills.

  Why Critical Thinking?

  The Problem Everyone thinks; it is our nature to do so. But much of our thinking, left to itself, is biased, distorted, partial, uninformed or down-right prejudiced. Yet the quality of our life and that of what we produce, make, or build depends precisely on the quality of our thought. Shoddy thinking is costly, both in money and in quality of life. Excellence in thought, however, must be systematically cultivated.

  A Definition Critical thinking is that mode of thinking - about any subject, content, or problem - in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully taking charge of the structures inherent in thinking and
  imposing intellectual standards upon them.

  The Result A well cultivated critical thinker:

  • raises vital questions and problems, formulating them clearly and precisely;
  • gathers and assesses relevant information, using abstract ideas to interpret it effectively comes to well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards;
  • thinks openmindedly within alternative systems of thought, recognizing and assessing, as need be, their assumptions, implications, and practical consequences; and
  • communicates effectively with others in figuring out solutions to complex problems.

  Critical thinking is, in short, self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking. It presupposes assent to rigorous standards of excellence and mindful command of their use. It entails effective communication and problem solving abilities and a commitment to overcome our native egocentrism and sociocentrism.
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  new hope and happiness

  Welcome to the board " coded logic"
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  Heaven

  You're missing 'Seductive Reasoning' from your list. That one's my fave!
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  blondie

  methodolgy and sturcture

  methodology and structure---perhaps typing lessons
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  LisaRose

  I am sorry we morons don't meet your criteria for being qualified to discuss religion and philosophy. Perhaps you would be better off in a different forum, there must be one out there that meets your elevated standards. We wouldn't want to distress you by mixing up our deductive reasoning with our abductive reasoning.
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  bohm

  Coded logic: what is your academic credentials wrt logic? Ever read something by godel or tarski?
• 

  AlphaMan

  Most of the forum posters are adults, and many being INTJ's at that, and he's questioning the logic ability of adult X-JW's here? Yeah.....there is a bit of arrogance in the OP.
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  jgnat

  I figure intelligence is as intelligence does. I never drank the kool-aid, so I don't fit your model of a former member, recently awakened. What helps me is self-editing as yadda yadda describes, which I learned from On Writing Well by Zinsser.

  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53343.On_Writing_Well?from_search=true

  It turns out that clear writing leads to clear thinking, and vice versa.

  I was part of the debating team in junior high school, which likely says far too much about me already. (Geek squad!) That training taught me that both sides of an argument can be fought intelligently. I always put myself in the shoes of my antagonist, and work out my best defences against their (anticipated) best arguments. It is most disappointing when my opponent devolves to ad-hominem. There are always so many better arguments left to explore! A large failure in religious argument is to assume rightness of one's position by faith, failing to thoroughly case out the opponent's position. The apologist ends up playing the fool, while remaining secure in their faith, by assuming Satan's wily ways have foiled the way of light (lower case L) yet again.

  I also recently took a reading test and it turns out I read twice as fast as the average Canadian, and trust me up here in Canada we have moved beyond scratching on birch-bark. That helps. My comprehension is good.

  http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/stats/Media/Personal-computers/Per-capita

  I notice that posters often miss a salient detail in a newcomer's post. For instance, they may not notice that they are talking to a teen-ager, or whether there are children involved. These details matter.