Re: Cringe
Posted: Sun Jun 27, 2021 4:04 pm
^^^^Umm...actually there are some very well educated people that refer to the moon as a planet. In their thinking, we are actually a part of a two planet system. Planet being defined by such things as the more or less rounded shape our spheroid takes do to collapse brought on by gravitational forces. This is an example of how tensions grow. Somebody says something that is a bit non-conformist, so others leap upon that as evidence of being "stupid." In reality, it is not about intelligence, but merely a different way of looking at things.
I had a recent discussion with a conservative on Linked-In where this could be noticed. He thought I was ill-informed because I referred to the U.S. as being a democracy. In his mind, this country is a republic. So, I pointed out to him that it may have started out as a republic, but that it was evolving in a more democratic direction. Yes, the founding fathers established the country as a republic, but the direct election of senators took place sometime after the founding fathers were no longer around. I could have also pointed out that there have been many ballot propositions whereby laws were enacted by direct vote of the people. Yet, his initial assessment of me was that I was ignorant for calling our country a "democracy."
Another recent example is that of the competing ideas about Covid-19. Did it jump from animal to human in a wet market in Hunan, or was a bio-research lab responsible for letting it escape?
Some liberals were so quick tp jump on the lab theory as being mere Trumpist propaganda, yet now many scientists are concluding that the possibility of the lab escape scenario should not be totally dismissed.
Conservatives aren't always wrong. Debate is healthy. Mere name calling and concluding that everybody in the opposition camp is "stupid" generates much heat and not always that much light. Further, it is not scientific. Science proceeds by formulating some times competing visions of how to explain observable events. Completely irrational explanations are thrown out, but often more than one competing vision emerges. It often takes generations to finally sort out which competing explanation is actually the best.
Look at quantum theory versus relativity. Quantum theory yields a fire wall as a barrier at the event horizon of a black hole. Relativity posits no such barrier. It is one of those areas where the lack of a Grand Unified Theory results in confusion. Still, both quantum theory and relativity can lay great claims to helping us understand how physics works.
Sure, all of this, including the two-planet theory, may be way over Trump's head. Yet, there are a lot of things in this universe that are still over everybody's head.
I had a recent discussion with a conservative on Linked-In where this could be noticed. He thought I was ill-informed because I referred to the U.S. as being a democracy. In his mind, this country is a republic. So, I pointed out to him that it may have started out as a republic, but that it was evolving in a more democratic direction. Yes, the founding fathers established the country as a republic, but the direct election of senators took place sometime after the founding fathers were no longer around. I could have also pointed out that there have been many ballot propositions whereby laws were enacted by direct vote of the people. Yet, his initial assessment of me was that I was ignorant for calling our country a "democracy."
Another recent example is that of the competing ideas about Covid-19. Did it jump from animal to human in a wet market in Hunan, or was a bio-research lab responsible for letting it escape?
Some liberals were so quick tp jump on the lab theory as being mere Trumpist propaganda, yet now many scientists are concluding that the possibility of the lab escape scenario should not be totally dismissed.
Conservatives aren't always wrong. Debate is healthy. Mere name calling and concluding that everybody in the opposition camp is "stupid" generates much heat and not always that much light. Further, it is not scientific. Science proceeds by formulating some times competing visions of how to explain observable events. Completely irrational explanations are thrown out, but often more than one competing vision emerges. It often takes generations to finally sort out which competing explanation is actually the best.
Look at quantum theory versus relativity. Quantum theory yields a fire wall as a barrier at the event horizon of a black hole. Relativity posits no such barrier. It is one of those areas where the lack of a Grand Unified Theory results in confusion. Still, both quantum theory and relativity can lay great claims to helping us understand how physics works.
Sure, all of this, including the two-planet theory, may be way over Trump's head. Yet, there are a lot of things in this universe that are still over everybody's head.