Skepticism and critical thinking

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remery said..
I didn't start this thread to troll Pcdefender. I've been interested in Skepticism and Critical Thinking for a long time. I wrote a newspaper column on this subject about 30 years ago.

Hard to understand someone so into Skepticism and Critical Thinking pushed the Covid jabs so hard.

Still pushing the monumental lie i see.

Yesterday one of my friends was back wearing a mask after having a break for 4 months. Has been wearing one i kid you not for most of the last 4 years. He works around 10 hours a day at a small cafe in Perth with one on.

He lives in fear - period

@Carantoc,
Thanks for the response.

Much like @Fangman, I thought you had a couple of good points regarding what people post and how people can choose to respond to those posts.

I thought your side note was completely irrelevant and perhaps indicates why you think people are "getting upset" when they aren't.

PC and others attacks on people based on their sex and gender are not harmless, victimless fun.

Calling out someone for sharing and trying to elevate the torrent of abuse directed at someone based on lies is not "getting upset".

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Pcdefender said..
Still pushing the monumental lie i see.

Yesterday one of my friends was back wearing a mask after having a break for 4 months. Has been wearing one i kid you not for most of the last 4 years. He works around 10 hours a day at a small cafe in Perth with one on.

He lives in fear - period

Perhaps he is immunocompromised and encounters a lot of people every day. Some of whom could be carrying COVID.

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Pcdefender said..
Still pushing the monumental lie i see.

Yesterday one of my friends was back wearing a mask after having a break for 4 months. Has been wearing one i kid you not for most of the last 4 years. He works around 10 hours a day at a small cafe in Perth with one on.

He lives in fear - period

"A man who led efforts in his central Texas community against mask-wearing and other preventative measures during the coronavirus pandemic has died from Covid-19, a month after being admitted to the emergency room. Caleb Wallace died on Saturday, his wife Jessica Wallace said on a GoFundMe page where she posted updates on his condition, the San Angelo Standard-Times reported.
...
Jessica Wallace told the newspaper her husband began experiencing Covid symptoms on 26 July but refused to get tested or go to the hospital. He instead took high doses of Vitamin C, zinc, aspirin and ivermectin, an anti-parasitic medicine used for livestock that officials have urged people not to take for Covid-19. He was taken to an emergency room on 30 July. Since 8 August he had been unconscious and on a ventilator."

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/aug/29/texas-caleb-wallace-anti-mask-protests-freedom-dies-covid-19

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psychojoe said..

D3 said..
If only there was somewhere we could look to find the answers you seek.

Have you tried reading the published literature on this topic?

Regarding your comment whether elements or vitamins that are vital to the human body would be freely excreted in urine?
That's exactly what happens with many vitamins, so maybe you can explain why you don't think it will happen with calcium?

That's a valid response.
But if I rely on published literature I'll believe the human body doesn't produce allantoin, when every other living plant or animal does. I'm more inclined to believe that everyone who was tested had gout, because why would you test anyone that doesn't have a problem.
There's also published literature proving statins as antidepressants. Meh.

Who knows, maybe there is published evidence supporting your hypothesis?

But you'll never know if you don't look for it, so if you're going to write-off any work done in this field I look forward to seeing the results from your studies.


Edit: remember accuracy helps, like being accurate when you make statements about whether animals produce certain compounds.

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D3 said..

Who knows, maybe there is published evidence supporting your hypothesis?

But you'll never know if you don't look for it, so if you're going to write-off any work done in this field I look forward to seeing the results from your studies.


Edit: remember accuracy helps, like being accurate when you make statements about whether animals produce certain compounds.

I'd be happy to peer-review Psychjoe's manuscript.

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fangman said..
In Buddhist philosophy, the First Noble Truth states that "life is suffering" (Dukkha). This concept encompasses the idea that suffering is an inherent part of existence, arising from attachment, desire, and the impermanence of life. It follows that when you are dead you are no longer suffering and therefore at peace.

If it were true that death brings peace we might as well end it now. There's a Buddhist joke that goes, "Why do we say Rest in Peace to the deceased. Wouldn't it be better to Rest in Peace while we're alive?"

According to the earliest compete text we have on what the Buddha taught which is in the Pali Canon, when you die you could be reborn into one of a number of different realms, some are hellish, some are heavenly, others are neutral. Could be material or immaterial. None are permanent. The only way to stop this process of birth/death (samsara) is to end craving (Nibbana/Nirvana). I'm not saying this because I know it, but that's what is taught in the ancient Buddhist texts. I lived in Buddhist monasteries for a while and learnt this there.

You mentioned the 1st noble truth which is correct. The 3rd noble truth states;

"Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: it is the remainderless fading away and cessation of that same craving, the giving up and relinquishing of it, freedom from it, non-reliance on it."

Basically what it is saying is that the end of suffering is realised when you end craving. According to Buddha, death is not the end of craving for the majority of beings, you're reborn into a new realm/state. For example, 1 realm is the ghost realm where the consciousness hasn't given up the craving to leave the place they were hence why ghosts always seem to be seen where they lived/died. After some time, the fuel that burns the ghosts existence is exhausted and that consciousness is reborn into their new realm/state.

A human rebirth is generally considered a good rebirth because unlike animals, we have a chance to better ourselves and gain wisdom leading to the eventual cessation of craving, you end the cycle of rebirth which results in the ultimate peace you talk about. Anyway that's the theory, I'm far from that place haha

If you want to learn more, this is an excellent book. It doesn't mess about, it's dry, straight to the point.

www.amazon.com.au/Noble-Eightfold-Path-Way-Suffering/dp/192870607X?nodl=1&dplnkId=59c78ed5-e2d8-4d53-9ce4-2bab3fe55dce

p.s I edited this because Remery sent me a PM worried fangman might be negatively effected through my choice of black humour. Fair enough. Cheers Remery.

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fangman said..
I am not arguing that in Buddhist scriptures you are/not reborn. I feel that it's one of the prominent teachings of the faith. Depending on your interpretation of the texts, at death you will enter an intermediate state (antarabhava.) My argument is that in this time you are truly at peace. I will however, admit a lived monastery experience probably trumps my reading a book.

There you go, this intermediate state you talk about is not death, it's just another rebirth into another realm. It maybe a peaceful state. Buddha taught all these realms are temporary.

Also according to Buddhist texts, you may well be reborn into a peaceful state but you could also be reborn as a farmed caged chicken. 2 very different existences. Don't worry, I doubt you'll be reborn as a caged chicken if you're a good person.

Also it gets a bit murky but antarabhava is from the Tibetan tradition and I could get into long winded discussions about Buddhist history however I would recommend you look into where all these texts originated from and start with the earliest texts as your source of information. A lot of the Tibetan teachings are mixed with the Bon religion and hence you kind of have a hybrid Buddhism that has come out of the place.

If you're in Perth go check out the Buddhist Society of WA. They do talks every Friday night in Nollamara. People from all over the world tune into the livestream. It's awesome.

bswa.org/location/dhammaloka-city-centre/

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fangman said..

I am reminded of the quote from @myusernam's linked piece.
"Boys throw stones at frogs in fun, but the frogs do not die in fun, but in earnest."
Trolling and baiting might be some sort of amusement to PM33 et al, but make no mistake it does harm.

I'd argue PM33 causes less harm to readers on this forum, than some contributors repeatedly calling him a liar and an idiot.

Outright lies and willful ignorance should be responded to with the same vigor in which they are put forward. To not do so can result in harm beyond imagination.

"A lie told once remains a lie but a lie told a thousand times becomes the truth" Joseph Goebbels

Yep, I agree @Subsonic. PC should really reign it in with his starting provocative threads just so he can call people names and feel superior.

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myscreenname said..

fangman said..

I am reminded of the quote from @myusernam's linked piece.
"Boys throw stones at frogs in fun, but the frogs do not die in fun, but in earnest."
Trolling and baiting might be some sort of amusement to PM33 et al, but make no mistake it does harm.

I'd argue PM33 causes less harm to readers on this forum, than some contributors repeatedly calling him a liar and an idiot.

Edit: it was your linked article in theverge. Apologies for mixing the two of you up. Possibly because his avatar is somehow quite memorable.

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Subsonic said..

Yes, it should. But to actively start threads to provoke it so you can continue to argue them down?
thats not on.

If you are talking about this thread, see above where I point out that I have been interested in Skepticism and Critical Thinking for over 30 years. You should listen to the podcast linked in the first post.

Seems to be quite a few comments about halfwits doing damage when they stand on a soapbox, as if this is some sort of new thing. Have you ever heard of federal politics.