We’ve got a long way to go…

Now, I think Sean Hannity is a moron.  That said, this story is unbelievable.  These folks are just beyond hateful.  They’re CRAZY.  Something has infected the brains of these people.  Like a virus.  Someone lied to them early and often.  You don’t end up holding a sign that says, ”God Hates Fags” at the funerals of the men who fight to protect your rights, unless you’ve been warped in ways we probably can’t understand.

I feel terrible for the families of the deceased, but I definitely still have a special sort of pity for the Phelps crew with the signs.  They are totally lost.  Reality is just not even an option for those kids.

  http://youtube.com/watch?v=Pi77koTk8mc

Create some cognitive dissonance,
Ben

 

This is your brain on 14 billion years of evolution…

This article is definitely worth reading.  It’s all about free will, our brain, and why the ’self’ may just be an illusion…

Check it out!

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121450609076407973.html?mod=yhoofront

What is a Theory? And why are Theories so important?

The following is from the HumanTruth.info website.  I think the idea of a Theory is very important to understand… so read on, folks!

“The building-block of science is the theory. New data results in new theories, and theories create experiments that are designed to test them, resulting in new data. The cyclic processes propels science forwards. Any new theory must displace an old one, and therefore needs abundant evidence in its favour; no-one will abandon the standing theory without good reason.

A common criticism of theories of evolution and of the big bang is that “they are only theories”. However, they misunderstand what the word “theory” means. A scientific theory that explains the facts well is accepted; whereas one that doesn’t is rejected. That something “is only a theory” does not effect whether it is accurate or not. Some example theories include the theory of gravity, and the theory that the Earth orbits the Sun.  Clearly, the evidence is more important than the theory.

“New theories are first of all necessary when we encounter new facts which cannot be “explained” by existing theories.” Albert Einstein (1950)

The best thing about theories is that when new evidence comes to light, new theories arise to replace or modify the old ones. Bertrand Russell states, “theories, if they are important, can generally be revived in a new form after being refuted as originally stated. Refutations [...] in most cases [are] only a prelude to further refinements” [1946, p69]. Some theories however, are unsalvageable and are completely abandoned. This way, science continues to explain reality as accurately as we can. Theories that deny that new theories could replace them – such as those that religious conservatives propound, are deluded. In the search for truth, it is essential to dogmatically stick to the assumption that whatever you think you know could actually be wrong. In that sense, the only correct way to search for truth is to know that everything is a theory, and nothing is absolute fact. In this way, human error is most readily corrected.

Russell (1935) explains how science begins from initial observations and continually builds until major theories are brought to general acceptance through long periods of practical trial and error.

“Science starts, not from large assumptions but from particular facts discovered by observation or experiment. From a number of such facts a general rule is arrived at, of which, if it is true, the facts in questions are instances. This rule is not positively asserted, but is accepted, to begin with, as a working hypothesis. If it is correct, certain hitherto unobserved phenomenon will take place in certain circumstances. If it is found that they do take place, that so far confirms the hypothesis; if they do not, the hypothesis must be discarded and a new one must be invented. However many facts are found to fit the hypothesis, that does not make it certain, although in the end it may come to be thought of in a high degree probable; in that case, it is called a theory rather than a hypothesis.” Religion and Science” by Bertrand Russell.”

Not bad, huh?

This is how we learn.  This is how information is transfered.  This is how we FIND THINGS OUT! 

Anyone who simply asserts truth without admitting that their ‘truth’ is really just a theory with a given degree of probability may be considered unreliable, and even dangerous, because the outcome of their assertion could be the spoiling of the human learning process if it gains popular momentum.

 

-Ben

GREAT resource for Creating Cognitive Dissonance

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

I’ve just come accross an excellent website that deals with several relevant topics.  Among them, the website discusses what TRUTH is, how experience shapes & contradicts our beliefs; abstract abilities of our mind; Free Will; Determinism; The Scientific Method; Ego; and Mass belief/media. 

One great anecdote from this section on Truth is, “Another illustration of the possible pitfalls involved in relying too heavily on expectations or hypotheses comes in a classic study by Bruner, Postman, and Rodrigues (1951). Their subjects expected to see conventional playing cards, but some of the cards used were incongruous (e.g. black hearts). When these incongruous cards were presented briefly, subjects sometimes reported seeing brown or purple hearts. Here we have an almost literal blending of stimulus information (bottom-up processing) and stored information (top-down processing).”  Cognitive Psychology by Eysenck and Keane. 

Interesting.  Our expectations and learned information HEAVILY influence our experiences.  This must apply to religion, too, huh?

Actually, yes.

“Religious experiences tend to conform closely to cultural and religious expectations. Village girls in Portugal have visions of the Virgin Mary – not of the Indian goddess Kali. Native Americans on their vision quest see visions of North American animals not of African ones. Thus it would seem that religious experiences, no matter how intense and all-consuming, are subject to constraint by the cultural and religious norms of the person to whom they occur. Another way of looking at this is to say that there can be no such thing as a pure experience. An experience always happens to a person, and that person already has an interpretive framework through which he or she views the world. Thus, experience and interpretation always combine and interpenetrate.” The Phenomenon of Religion by Momen, 1999.

The link below also covers Soul Theory and the wonders of Life on Earth.  I would check those three sections out first.  Human Truth, Soul Theory and Life on Earth, each of which has several sub-categories.  The rest of the site is very interesting, but I think those 3 sections are best. 

Check it out!

http://www.humantruth.info/index.html

 

-Ben

Selfish Gene No Longer a Theory?

My favorite book is “The Selfish Gene” by Richard Dawkins.  It’s a book about our genes, and how they “act” selfishly.  The book also addresses altruism, Game Theory and group dynamics.  If there was ever a book that I would recommend over ALL others, this would be it. 

Below is a link to an article that shows new research has led Peter Oxley and Graham Thompson to show unquestionable evidence that the Selfish Gene theory is now REALITY.

Check it out!

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080620115905.htm

 

-Ben

George Carlin – Idealist

I saw George Carlin at the Orleans Casino in Las Vegas 2 months ago, and now, at the age of 71, he is dead. 

Best known for being a counter-culture comedian, Carlin was an atheist and many of his routines (especially his latest “It’s Bad for You”), centered around the ridiculous nature of religions and the people who follow them.

I especially liked to read this – “Early success and celebrity, however, was as dinky and hollow as a gratuitous pratfall to Mr. Carlin. “I was entertaining the fathers and the mothers of the people I sympathized with, and in some cases associated with, and whose point of view I shared,” he recalled later, as quoted in the book “Going Too Far” by Tony Hendra, which was published in 1987. “I was a traitor, in so many words. I was living a lie.  In 1970, Mr. Carlin discarded his suit, tie, and clean-cut image as well as the relatively conventional material that had catapulted him to the top. Mr. Carlin reinvented himself, emerging with a beard, long hair, and jeans .” 

I think anyone who has seen the flaws of society and not gone with the flow can empathize with that decision.  I think the reason we can empathize, is that deep down we all share a common bond.

“Although some criticized parts of his later work as too contentious, Mr. Carlin defended the material, insisting that his comedy had always been driven by an intolerance for the shortcomings of humanity and society. “Scratch any cynic,” he said, “and you’ll find a disappointed idealist.”

Let’s create some cognitive dissonance today and take the disappointed out of “disappointed idealist”.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/24/arts/24carlin.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=08144f1ad131c561&ex=1214366400

 

Ben

 

Philly = Best City Ever?

My hometown is right outside Philadelphia, PA and I am a huge fan of the city (and especially of the Eagles.  Go Birds!)

Anyhow, Philly is making me proud once again!  Apparently they are having a Year of Evolution, which will include exhibits, speakers, museum tours, presentations and a talk by Judge Jones, who presided over the Dover, PA ‘Intelligent Design’ case.

Take a look…

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/23/us/23darwin.html?ref=science

 

-Ben

WTF

Surely you’ve seen this story, but I thought I’d put this out there for you to read if you haven’t. 

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/06/20/teacher.cross/index.html

I’m speechless.  John Freshwater is a dangerous man, and we need to protect developing minds from his brand of insanity.

-Ben

Why Create Cognitive Dissonance?

As I sat down at on my couch the other night, I watched the inspiring story of Ayaan Hirsi Ali.  If you don’t know her story it is an inspiring one.  Hirsi Ali, a Muslim, was raised in Somalia, and moved to Saudi Arabia at the age of 8.  She then moved to Ethiopia before settling in Kenya. 

Her father was a progressive man, and insisted that she be fully educated.  It was this education that led to her first feelings of freedom, individualism and joy.  She learned to read and speak English at a young age, and speaks it VERY beautifully today (along with 6 other languages).  Hirsi Ali became enamored with the Nancy Drew series of books, and longed to be like Nancy… to have adventure, to have freedoms, to speak her mind and to choose her love. 

Hirsi Alli was on her way to marry her distant cousin, in an arranged marriage she did NOT look forward to, when she stopped in the Netherlands and applied for political asylum in 1992.  She wanted to be a ’Westerner’.  She worked various jobs, including one role as an interpreter.  Hirsi Ali, for the next 10 years, came into contact with all sorts of people, young and old, male and female, happy and sad, religious and atheist, Christian and Agnostic.  And many other muslims.   Her faith in Islam began to decline, and her disenfranchisement from her former life became complete when she read the Atheist Manifesto in 2002, after recently listening to Osama Bin Laden justify the murder of 3,000 humans on September 11, 2001.

Today, Hirsi Ali travels under armed-guard.  She is afraid for her life because of her out-spoken political stances against Islam, Mohammed, Alla and faith in general.  In 2004, Hirsi Ali wrote a movie called, “Submission”, which was directed by Theo Van Gogh.  Van Gogh was murdered by a militant muslim, Mohammed Bouyeri, who also threatened to kill Hirsi Ali. 

Her life is in danger, and yet she does not back down.  She does not quiet herself.  She boldy moves forward, with absolute clarity that her actions will CREATE COGNITIVE DISSONANCE among the believers in Islam, and believers in general.  And she knows in her heart that this is done in the name of liberty, justice, and most importantly, reason.

I was so impressed by her speech (which you can find at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuaMHiMsRuY) that I decided I HAD to reach out.  I had to rock the boat.  I had to create a little cognitive dissonance of my own.   It is in the name of Ayaan Hirsi Ali that we dedicate this site.  And hopefully we’ll be able to use it to help you create a little cognitive dissonance in YOUR life and the lives of those around you.

Stay Tuned! 

 

Ben Barnett