Are you applying the same scrutiny to your beliefs?
@ Dubstepped: Now you are thinking! What would it take to convince you personally, your mind, that something is certainly true?
Human Origins
by cofty 56 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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Fisherman
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Phizzy
Fisherman only seems to turn up on Threads to disrupt them, particularly ones that challenge the Bible.
Thank you Cofty once again for pointing this information in our direction. I am fascinated by Human Origins and love to get the latest info, thanks again.
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Ruby456
phizzy the article itself re the footprints is very carefully worded. I don't know what fisherman's mission is but if he is asking questions that make us doubt then this may be a good thing - after all the scientific method requires doubts to be investigated and helps us build scepticism which leads to testing for evidence.
I too am fascinated by human origins especially how we developed our cognitive powers. there have been many theories re this. One theory puts our ancestors as the hunted. while not taking this theory too seriously but giving it the seriousness that it deserves I can see how being prey may have caused our ancestors to develop intelligence, cunning and deception.
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dubstepped
What a sad retort Fisherman. Just the kind of discussion one expects with a cult victim. I take back what I said about your reasoning abilities. On another thread you compared Mike & Kim to Isis, lol.
Alright kids, this is your brain (cofty) and this is your brain on cults (fishy).
Sorry, I tried to see fishy in a compassionate light and as a real person, not a cult robot. He just doesn't help his cause. I'd still buy you a beer if I ever ran into you, but conversations with you just aren't open and honest. For that I can have some compassion as denial is what it takes to survive in it and denial is dishonest.
Stay away from cults kids!
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Fisherman
On another thread you compared Mike & Kim to Isis, lol.
No, that is a misrepresentation of what I stated. All that I meant to say is that as genuine as Isis and MK may be, good intentions don't make copyright infringement or stealing moral.
Also, MK published their views using wt material and it is a defense if they claim that they did not know at that time that they were breaking the law . But they were informed to stop but inspite they continue to defy the owners wishes besides deliberately breaking the law with no legal actions filed by them in Court in support. That is wrong. It could be wt or my worst enemy, makes no difference. Because I hate someone doesn't make it right to infringe on something that is not mine to use.
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fulltimestudent
Ruby456: "... the scientific method requires doubts to be investigated and helps us build scepticism which leads to testing for evidence."
Absolutely! The reason why most of us (likely) fell victim to the virulent form of xtianity that worships yhwh and his jesus sidekick, is that we lacked adequate cognitive skills. I repeat my (these days) favourite quotation:
"A student must first of all learn to doubt" (Zheng Yi, 12th Century scholar).
We all probably did have some doubts at first, but our lack of cognitive skills, meant that we were not able to truly examine what we were being taught. That was true, particularly if a relationship had been established with the person teaching us, because then we'd be affected by the "liking bias." We can easily understand the importance of that issue, as witnesses, once a HH took a dislike to us (for whatever reason) we would never be able to start a study.
And there are some outstanding examples of christian's lack of cognitive skills, currently on display in Australia's debate over the same sex marriage issue. No doubt that's because in a modern multicultural society personal views of a law giving divinity should not restrict the rights of others, So the "no" campaign does not focus on the key issue, but using a combination of the 'slippery slope' and 'red herring' fallacies, the christian side is claiming that if two people of the same sex can marry, then boys will be made to wear dresses to school. But what else would we expect christians to do?
Ruby 456: " ... I too am fascinated by human origins especially how we developed our cognitive powers. there have been many theories re this. One theory puts our ancestors as the hunted. while not taking this theory too seriously but giving it the seriousness that it deserves I can see how being prey may have caused our ancestors to develop intelligence, cunning and deception."
I'm guessing that you're referring to the dual thinking concept. That is, at one level, we make quick decisions. If that is really a predator lurking near by, our survival may depend on fast thinking - a quick response. We often see that sort of thinking by 'hunted' animals, and once one is spooked, many may also react (herd response). Young animal's may instinctively be fast thinkers. Whereas, the cultivation of good cognitive skills takes time and thought.
If this is a new thought to some, you could check out these sites. But don't just accept, consider it carefully.
and contrast these claims
http://schoolofthinking.org/2012/02/are-you-a-slow-thinker/
" ... Starting from the conflict-based I-am-right-and-you-are-wrong premise logic traps the thinker into defending his viewpoint against any suggestion of change (because “I-am-right!”). It becomes difficult, even impossible, for the thinker to escape from his own point-of-view. To think outside-the-square.
Programmed into your brain by the education system logic was designed by the Roman church for Europe and then spread around the world by missionaries. It was imported into Australia, along with rabbits, 200 years ago. Designed to defend ‘truth’ logic is driven by judgment. Once the thinker judges something as either ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ their enormous brainpower is then devoted to defending that opinion. This makes it very difficult for the thinker to escape from his opinion to find a much better one."Which leads us into the Dunning Kruger Effect:
The entire world is currently watching the problems that can arise (as an example) when someone, say the Leader of an influential nation, has formed an opinion without considering wider aspects of an issue. So that he/she doesn't know what they don't know.
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Ruby456
thanks fulltimestudent.
I was thinking of how bipedalism may have evolved. here the thesis is that ancestors of humans were fairly small and vulnerable to large predators and lived by means of foraging and gathering rather than hunting and gathering. I think though that there was a mix of hunting and gathering and foraging and gathering and scavenging and gathering too.
And yes I agree that having to outwit or work with large predators would need cognitive abilities.
interestingly a recent BBC program shows how certain bushmen in Africa forage/scavenge for protein and offers an interesting angle.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03n6qms
Facing down a lion with the knowledge of possible outcomes is not something you do without fear but it is something you really need to do with apparent confidence. I realised that as we approached the lion I didn’t have a word to accurately describe this new experience, so I’ve created my own. ‘Fearfidence'. Gordon in tribes predators and me