The alleged problem with “Me too!” comments

One of our earlier posts concerned the efforts of evangelicals to relegate early hominid fossils to the back room of Kenya’s National Museum.   That post recently drew this comment from James Davenock:

It seems that many here could simply replace the name Sam Harris, with Jesus, Newton or Sullivan in their writings. Many keep quoting others in an attempt to get their point across rather than just trying to get their point across. You could say “Dave, I admire Jesus’ viewpoints” or “Dave, I admire Sam Harris’ viewpoints” or “Dave, I admire Newton’s viewpoints”. . .

 The difference between Science and Religion is Science has a process by which to prove its ideas while Religion does not and requires you to simply accept or excommunicate. I have found the same smugness in both religious and science types and that is a bit disquieting.

The wise man first says “I do not know”

I started responding to James Davenock’s comment at the location of that earlier post, but it grew long enough to justify posting at this separate location.

Davenock raises a good point.  I suspect that there are many non-believers out there (all of us, some of the time), who “hero-worship” people like Richard Dawkins just like many theists hero-worship James Dobson or Jesus. You can quickly spot these folks by their writings, which essentially amount to “Way to go, Charles [Darwin]!”  Or “Way to go, Jesus!”  This lack of thoughtful content is no more informative than the rote prayers …

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Bush admits he doesn’t know what’s going on in Iraq

Today ABC's Martha Raddatz asked Bush whether Iraq was embroiled in a civil war. Bush:  "It's hard for me living in this beautiful White House to give you an assessment, a first hand assessment . . ." Bush continued on: I haven't been there. You have, I haven't. But I…

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Who gets assassinated? Who owns the country? Why won’t we improve education? Ask George Carlin.

This is a 13-minute presentation Carlin delivered on August 28, 2006. According to Carlin, as the country continues to deteriorate, “Nobody seems to notice.  Nobody seems to care.” Comment posted at the video site:  “As in feudal days, it seems that the jester is the only one left allowed to…

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More of my favorite quotes

I do love quotes!  A novel in every sentence, as I see it.  

I’ve been collecting quotes for years. These are quotes that I noticed or noticed anew over the past six months.  There’s no particular theme here, though many of these do concern education/enlightenment:

In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

One can always be kind to people about whom one cares nothing.

Oscar Wilde The Picture of Dorian Gray

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

Aristotle

I don’t mind what language an opera is sung in so long as it is a language I don’t understand.

Sir Edward Appleton

Too many have dispensed with generosity in order to practice charity.

Albert Camus

An idealist is a person who helps other people to be prosperous.

Henry Ford

Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten.

B. F. Skinner , New Scientist, May 21, 1964

Most people have seen worse things in private than they pretend to be shocked at in public.

Edgar Watson Howe

Freedom of the press is limited to those who own one.

A. J. Liebling

“We do not inherit the world from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”

Navajo proverb

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