SKLOG is now at Blogger

I've been neglectful. As I sat at work watching my Facebook friends enjoy themselves at TAM8, I sat back and pouted about my inability to join in the fun and debate. Then I remembered that I have my very own personal way of spouting my opinion via the web. It's this blog thingy.

Skeptics in the Pub is a website that I created for many reasons, but SKLOG is my outlet for venting and/or initiating conversation. They were all created on iWeb, which is basically "Web Design for Dummies." The only problem with iWeb is that it's pretty cumbersome to make changes to a website and/or blog. This has kept me from regularly posting. NO MORE!

Since I can write to blogger from pretty much anywhere I want, here I go. This takes things and makes them so much easier, I no longer have an excuse. Stay tuned!

-Chris

Into the Lion's Den

I recently had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of Jim “Dr. Dim” Fitzsimons. One of the things I enjoy most about being a part of the burgeoning skeptical movement is making new friends and acquaintances, regardless of whether they are real friends or “Facebook Friends.” Having like minded folks out there is a comfort no matter who you are or what you think.

Jim touched base after seeing this website and we got to e-mailing. Turns out, we’re both regular working joes just finding outlets for expressing our thoughts and opinions about skepticism, reality, and in my case boobs (though I imagine Jim’s a fan as well). There are two major differences however. In my case, I write this blog. This means that I can write, edit, rewrite, re-edit, and so on until I arrive at something that is approximately intelligible and makes the point I want to make.

Jim doesn’t write, he talks. He has a live radio show that goes out to the world every Saturday night at approximately the same time that I’m slipping into the deepest recesses of REM sleep just as my 9 year old nudges me and asks if it’s okay to get a a glass of water. Oh, Jim draws too. He’s a cartoonist in addition to a radio show host and a “guy with a real job too.”

The other big difference? Jim’s a skeptical radio show host on a radio station full of paranormal, supernatural type shows. He’s basically the sole voice of reason in a sea of woo woo. That takes stones.

I’m under no serious delusions that someone will be a firm believer in fill in your silly belief of choice here, and will find my site, see the light, and convert thereby setting off a chain reaction of rationalism throughout the world overnight. If you’re reading this, I have calculated that there’s a 97.624% chance that you’re a skeptic too. Jim ain’t preaching to the choir. He’s talking to the folks that are not reading this column.

So, just curious... How many of you spend time actually talking to supernatural believers in a serious way? What approach has helped you break down barriers? I think we can all agree that preaching to the choir isn’t as productive as we’d all hope. In addition, calling someone an ignoramus tends to alienate as well. What’s the balance? How can we open eyes, ears and minds to the realities of the world? I don’t know the answer, but I do know this. Guys like Jim are out there trying to find that answer. Are you?

Is Your Water Clustered and Ionized?

If not, expect that the skin on the backs of your hands will mysteriously thin out as you get older, revealing more of the veins and bones within. In addition, your agility and speed will reduce, mental cognition will fade, and you will be prone to bouts of gas and lost TV remote controls. Yes ladies and gentlemen, all these horrible things and more will happen to you if you are not drinking clustered, ionized water.

Don’t believe me? Well just look around! The proof is everywhere. Did you know that we once lived on a planet that was full of vibrant, happy people living hundreds of years of disease free existence because the water was naturally clustered and ionized? Yes, it’s true. Water molecules were once more likely to lump together into smaller “clusters” of only a few molecules vs. the large clusters of molecules we now have. Right about the same time that commercial agriculture was being developed, water underwent a serious catastrophic change in the molecular energy of its ionized, magnetic potential for locomotive protuberances. The result is chunky water full of molecules that more closely resemble H2000O1000. Do you really want to be cramming your body full of those giant toxic water chunks? Are you nuts?!

Scientists all over the world have known for years of the existence of a top secret water de-chunkificator that provides them with the blissful existence of our ancient ancestors, who largely laid next to waterfalls while being fanned and fed grapes by a legion of servant lemurs. These scientists hung around in lab coats drinking the improved water and wringing their hands while laughing maniacally at the fate of innocent people like you! They knew that they had the secret, and you did not. They guarded it closely.

But now the secret is out! Out of the sheer goodness of his saintlike heart, Dr. Masuro Emoto has made this scientific sounding system available to everybody! In fact, the under-sink unit is available for a low, low price of ONLY $2,495.95 (plus $6.95 S&H). For a lifetime of orgasmic, chocolate flavored bliss, isn’t this a small price to pay? In addition, the unit comes with a cool screen that flashes various numbers which change when you press any of the equally cool buttons on the side.

QUICK!!! you need to order NOW as Dr. Emoto is being hunted by a team of evil scientists who are out to destroy civilization, shut down the release of this revolutionary technology, and populate the world with slime creatures who like to crawl up your pant legs and cause major skeeviness. These scientists will stop at nothing to shut down the selfless generosity shown by Dr. Emoto. Only YOU can take control by buying three or four of these units to give away to friends whose lives you want to improve. Just think of how much they’ll love you when you present them with a gift of a Dr. Emoto Water Ionization Clusterer Whizbang 1000! You’ll be the toast of the neighborhood! Everybody will love you for improving their lives, saving civilization, and stopping the slime creatures. Order now!

But WAIT! There’s more! Because we have been drinking this magic water, we have developed psychic abilities that allow us to determine that YOU (yes you, don’t look around the room) are the kind of person who is capable of and deserving to make giant, obscene piles of money. Don’t you deserve happiness and health? How would you like to make the world a better place, improve the health, happiness, and hair texture of all your friends, AND get richer than Bill Gates?

For a limited time, for only $1,000 extra, YOU can become and exclusive dealer of Dr. Emoto’s Super Duper Water system! Simply send in an extra $1,000 and you’ll get as many units as you’d like (minimum 50) for only $1,495 apiece! Simply re-sell the units to people who you care about for the standard $2,495.95 and earn $1,000.95 for yourself! Some quick math shows that you could literally earn 50million dollars in only 1 month.

What are you waiting for! Your new life awaits. Act now! Click HERE.

What is Skepticism?

Not too long ago, I went through a process of carefully and methodically pointing out the deficiencies in the arguments of a prolific YouTube posting asswipe who desperately needs a slap in the face with an inappropriate anatomical feature. His main argument was that evolution is an evil cabal and the greatest hoax played on humanity ever. His proof? Why were the arms of T-Rex so short?

Yep. That’s it. I could go into his arguments in more depth and the blinding stupidity he exudes in his posts, but that’s not the point of this column. You see, whenever I posted another comment pointing out an aspect of evolution that clearly answered the questions he was asking, he simply responded that I had given up my skeptical thinking and was buying into the BS being sold by the scientific community. He proudly wore the “skeptical” badge by refusing to believe pretty much anything anyone told him. Incidentally, he was not a supporter of ID or creationism either. His entire point was that we just don’t know, but that evolution is not the answer.

This fellow was clearly beyond hope and reason, but he did get me thinking about something. What is skepticism? We all know that there’s a big skeptical movement afoot, but what exactly qualifies as a “skeptical” idea, or position?

I’ll start by giving a rather non-controversial definition. Skepticism is the application of critical thinking to assess the validity of a claim or hypothesis. Note that I didn’t say “reject.” I said “assess.” While the word itself has negative connotations, its real application is anything but. The Youtube moron was cynical, not skeptical. Rejecting a theory because you don’t understand the answer to a question is not skepticism. If this man had simply left it at “I just don’t understand how evolution could have produced the variety of life that we have today,” I would have been okay with his holding on to the skeptical label. Instead, he replied to any and all posts against his ideas with such well thought out arguments as “OH MY GAWD.” His outright rejection of any and all evidence was not skepticism. It was intellectually lazy cynicism. Got a few minutes and want to try breaking through the 3 foot thick leaden skull of this gent? Click below:

Aforementioned Moron’s YouTube Channel

That said, do we sometimes see self proclaimed Skeptics behaving unskeptically? Oh yeah. Hey, I’m guilty of it too. We all are. If some new piece of evidence challenges our notion of someone or something, do we always critically analyze it before judging whether or not to abandon our previous notion? Not usually. Usually we ignore the evidence. Keep in mind, I’m talking about what all people do, not just what skeptics do.

Are you a Democrat? Name for me 1 piece of positive legislation that a Republican has put forth. If you can name several positive Democratic initiatives but no Republican ones. I guarantee that you’re not thinking skeptically. You are noticing the bad stuff coming from the GOP and the good stuff coming from your own team. Good ole’ confirmation bias rearing it’s head again. If you can’t name anything good from either side, you’re probably just not paying close attention to politics. Do you ever find yourself defending a lecherous pro athlete who happens to play for your favorite team? If so, would you impart the same vocal defense for the star player of that team you love to hate? What about a rather mediocre performance by your favorite actor/singer/performer? Would you defend it as “she made the most out of bad material,” or would you appropriately hold her feet to the coals of criticism while looking forward to her next (hopefully better) venture?

Skepticism asks that we critically analyze information and be ready to follow where the truth leads. Sometimes it leads to places we don’t necessarily want to go. Go anyway. Don’t be afraid, don’t be timid, don’t be defensive or upset. Just forge ahead and see what truth lies there. It’s one trip that I can honestly say is always worth the effort.

The Evolution of an Idea

There once was a population of beings roaming a planet. These beings were called “humans” and they had an insatiable hunger. The hunger was for knowledge, and they searched far and wide for a fruit that would satisfy it. Eventually, through a process of random mutation combined with selective breeding, the tree known as “Religion” produced a fruit that tasted good and filled the void left by the hunger. The hunger begged “where did we come from?” The fruit answered; “A supernatural being created us through his divine powers and inspiration.” It tasted good. The people ate, and in so doing, they spread the seed far and wide.

Eventually a tree known as “Science” began to grow nearby. It fought for the specks of sunlight filtering through the overwhelming canopy of the Religion tree. The fruits were bitter, but far more nourishing. Most humans avoided the bitter fruit in favor of the sweet, juicy flesh of the Religion tree. Eventually though, a small group of humans decided to try this newer fruit out of curiosity. While it didn’t taste very good, they soon felt a new strength provided by the improved nutrition. They grew strong and they realized the new vigor was a direct result of the better fruit. This group became known as “Skeptics.” They tried to tell others, but they were rejected and ridiculed most of the time. Fans of the Religion fruit even took to chopping down Science trees where they found them in hopes of eliminating this tiny competitor to their established food source. The Skeptics continued to eat and gain strength from the new fruit however, and they spread the seed just a bit quicker than the anti-Science people could cut them down. Eventually the Science fruit became a mainstay and the two trees evolved into many subspecies that produced different types of fruit. While people ate fruits from various trees, they tended to stick to the fruits either from the Science or the Religion subspecies.

One subspecies of the Religion tree produced a Creationist fruit. It had a unique flavor and offered specific nutrients that were not found in any Science trees for many, many years. People from both groups ate of this tree and spread its seeds, even though it tasted somewhat strange to the Skeptics. Eventually, one day a white bearded man known as Charles Darwin discovered a young tree with a unique fruit. It had never been seen before. He called this fruit “Evolution.” It tasted particularly strange, but the tree bore the distinct marks of the Science genera, so he knew from where it came. Many curious Skeptics came to try this new fruit and initially agreed that it tasted strange and exotic, but uniquely satisfying as well. They offered the fruit to the Creationist tree fans, but were spurned and shunned. The creationists saw a direct threat to the survival of their favorite tree and they began formulating a plan to rid the world of this competitor. They claimed it was poisonous. They pointed to negative acts perpetrated by Evolution fruit eaters and argued that the new fruits made them do it. They pointed to their own good acts as proof of the positive value of the Creationist fruit. Still, the Skeptics ate and grew stronger yet. The Evolution fruit was once again far more nutritious than the Creationist fruit. They grew strong and spread the seed. The Evolution trees began to fill the landscape. The nutritional needs of the people asked “Where did we come from?” The Creationist fruit answered “A supernatural being created us through his divine powers and inspiration.” The Evolution fruit answered “we evolved through a long process from earlier, simpler life forms.”

Just as the Creationist trees began to dwindle and die off, a random beneficial mutation occurred that produced a new subspecies of fruit known as “I.D.” It tasted similar to the Creationist fruit, but lacked some of the more offensive overtones that people had come to notice. It was still poor in nutrition, but its less offensive taste intrigued many people. It tasted good and it began to spread far and wide. Many people failed to notice the diminished health benefits it offered as compared to the Evolution fruit, but they ate anyway because it tasted good. The I.D. trees began to pop up around the landscape as the older Creation trees dwindled further. For the first time in many years, the Evolution trees faced a real challenge to dominance and survival. Fans of the Evolution trees continued to work hard to spread the seed and nurture the saplings in hopes that people would eventually understand the nutritive value their trees offered. The ID tree fans only saw the Evolution trees as competition that was taking up growing space that should be allotted to their favorite fruits. They planted their own seeds and pulled up the roots of the evolution trees at every opportunity. The nutritional needs of the people asked “Where did we come from?” The I.D. fruit answered “A supernatural being created us through his divine powers and inspiration, we’re just not 100% sure who he is.” The Evolution fruit answered “we evolved through a long process from earlier, simpler life forms.”

One day a comet struck the earth with devastating ferocity. It was known as the Kitzmiller Comet and it shook the foundation of the planet. Animals scattered in fear, as humans scrambled to make sense of it all. The comet blasted a great deal of debris into the air, and the debris rained down upon the plants and animals everywhere. Only the strongest species survived, and the I.D. trees proved to be very weak indeed. While a few struggled along valiantly, the stronger Evolution trees took over much of the landscape and nourished the hungry people. Life was good.

After a short period of time, the I.D. trees underwent another random mutation. This mutation produced a unique fruit that has begun to catch the attention of people everywhere, specifically former fans of the Creationist and the I.D. fruits. While offering little in nutritional value, it tastes good and has signs of increased survivability. There are only a few of the as yet unnamed trees, but fans are beginning to gather around to taste this strange and exotic new fruit. They have begun to spread the seeds and are telling others about the wonders of their new find. The nutritional needs of the people ask “Where did we come from?” The Evolution fruit answers “we evolved through a long process from earlier, simpler life forms.” This new fruit says “we do not know the answer, but evolution is clearly impossible.”

The "Evolution" of Evolution

I've seen the argument enough times to make me want to pull my hair out, and it always goes something like this: "Evolutionary Theory is always changing, and scientists can't seem to figure out what's what. How can we believe something that the scientists don't even seem to understand?"

Let me first debunk this claim/question in a very clear, very unambiguous answer. Evolutionary Theory is not changing, nor do scientists debate about whether or not there's any truth to it. It's nearly 100% universally agreed within the scientific community that Evolution is fact (the word "Theory" is used in scientific disciplines to mean "fact." Many anti-evolutionists claim that it's "Only a Theory" based on their misunderstanding of this word. The word "Hypothesis" means "an explanation that has not yet been properly proven or disproven.")

So where does this argument come from?

While there are many examples, I'll highlight one just to shed light on the source of the misunderstanding; Neanderthal Man.

Neanderthal Man was found in Europe, and we have many skeletons from various parts of the continent. The bone structures are very similar to humans, but are definitely distinctly different and somewhat more "ape-like." When the fossils were first discovered and studied, it was logically assumed and agreed that these must have been human ancestors. Fast forward to the age of DNA. When the bones were subjected to DNA analysis, it was found conclusively that Neanderthal Man was NOT a human ancestor at all. While we do share many common features, Neanderthal Man was actually a branch of the family tree that completely died out. Modern humans did not descend from them. Cro-Magnon Man on the other hand does prove to be an ancestor. Once again, DNA shows this. We used to know only that humans had predecessors that were distinctly different. We could make logical guesses as to which fossils represented those ancestors. Advances in science helped us to pinpoint which fossils actually did represent our ancestry, and which did not.

Anti-evolutionists point and shout "SEE! They thought Neanderthal Man was a human ancestor and now they've been shown that they were wrong! We can't trust anything these guys say! Evolution MUST be wrong." Let me be 100% clear. Scientists were initially wrong about where Neanderthal Man fit into the tree of life. They then corrected themselves. There was NEVER any disagreement about the Theory of Evolution simply because a specific species was temporarily incorrectly categorized.

The specifics of which fossils represent ancestors of which modern animals is a daunting task to say the least. Scientists continue to study this, put the pieces together, and gradually gain a better understanding. In the process mistakes are made, then they are corrected when new evidence shows them to be incorrect. This is science. If we threw out an entire discipline of science every time a scientist or group of scientists found out that a previous assumption was wrong, we wouldn't have modern medicine. "That pill didn't work like they thought it would! Medicine must all be a sham!"

How it works:

Since Darwin first presented his theory, scientists have searched to understand the specifics. Darwin correctly observed that we can breed dogs (and cattle, vegetables, pigs, cats, etc) in a short period of time to create new varieties that hardly resemble the originals at all. By simple selective breeding we have taken the Asian Grey Wolf and created dachshunds, great danes, pit bull, chihuahuas, yorkshire terriers, dobermans, and labradoodles. These dogs hardly resemble each other at all yet we have concrete proof of their evolution from the original wolves. Darwin wondered whether or not the same process that breeders used could also be the cause of the evolution. Obviously in the case of dogs (or cattle, pigs, vegetables, etc) there is an actual breeder involved that is guiding the process. Could there be a similar "guiding force" in nature?

After watching and studying nature for many years, Darwin realized that there does not need to be an intelligence behind the process. Simple reproductive success and survival success will naturally select for those individuals who best possess the ability to survive and reproduce. Depending on climate and natural territory, this could mean very different things. For example, evolution of humans in the area we know as Europe would have favored lighter and lighter skin. This is because humans need a certain amount of direct sunlight for the processing of vitamin D. Without it, many health problems will occur. In Africa (where the original humans evolved), the sun is far more intense so darker skin with natural protections is favored. Those same protections inhibited the ability to process sufficient vitamin D as early humans migrated north. The result? Those with less protection from the sun (lighter skin) actually gained and advantage through their better ability to survive. They passed these lighter skin genes to their offspring, and the process continued for thousands of years.

Evolution is not a process of perfecting a form, nor is it a process that is striving to reach a pinnacle (thought by many to be humans). It is a process of very slow, very gradual adaptation that results in changing features and forms. The newer features remain only if they convey an advantage in the specific circumstances in which that organism finds itself. We are still evolving, as is every other organism on the planet. It happens VERY SLOWLY, which is why so many people have a hard time with this fact.

If you have a hard time understanding how something works, but all the world's scientists agree on it, there are only two possible conclusions. 1) All the world's scientists are wrong, and you are right or 2) you need to study more in order to better understand the situation. Which makes more sense to you?

Tukata Guabini Floperta Spopplegonk

Perhaps one of the most confusing yet widespread beliefs held by Christians is that god will occasionally bestow upon a select few the ability to "speak in tongues." Presumably, this phenomenon takes place when a person begins rambling in some foreign language of which he is not familiar. Lamentably, the people surrounding him are also not familiar and cannot translate the babble. True believers hold that this is actually a spiritual language of god and we are simply not meant to understand.

I've only seen video recordings of this, and I have no desire to see or hear more. Interestingly, most modern Christians prefer to quietly ignore this phenomenon and claim that it's only performed by fringe extremists. They generally do not offer explanations for why Paul (the founder of Christianity) accepted it as a real gift from god. In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul explained the rules under which people should be speaking in tongues during services, limiting the numbers to just two "speakers" as long as someone was there to translate. Of course, this contrasts with the modern argument that people cannot understand it due to its supernatural status. Once again, we see theology evolving to stay within the confines of science and knowledge.

Let me explain my concern with this. God, the founder of the universe, the almighty creator of everything, the setter of all the rules, the grand inquisitor nanny, decides to bestow upon a select few Christians (notice that this is specific to Christianity) the ability to speak in a language that neither the speaker nor the listeners can understand. This is a gift? We are told that god hears our very thoughts, so does he need to give somebody this linguistic ability so he may better understand them? Presumably not. Does the holy language pass along new messages and dictations for the people in attendance? Well, no. What exactly is this gift?

What if god bestowed upon me the "gift" of suddenly having the ability to cook inedible, poisonous food? How about the "gift" of being able to sense the presence of a T-Rex? Perhaps I'm just thinking in human terms. Perhaps I need to expand my definition of "gift" from "that which is intended to bring some measure of joy or usefulness."

When people act utterly crazy and unpredictable, we should be assessing their danger to themselves and others. When they act crazy and unpredictable within the setting of a religious service, they are seen as having received god personally. Instead of being helped, they are being envied for their spiritual strength. Others are then encouraged to act similarly bizarre. Humans are attention seeking animals so people continually one-up each other until all eyes are pointed at them. This holds until somebody begins burning their own flesh or playing with venomous snakes thereby garnering the attention for themselves. When does rationality bring everybody down from this dangerous game of "Look at Me!!!!?"

If I were to walk into a pentecostal revival and begin screaming that god has blessed me and needs me to pass along a message of redemption to all in attendance, I would likely be mobbed by the crowd eagerly looking to hear what I had to say. Now, put a few of those people on a sidewalk heading toward a park with their kids. Let me stand on the opposite side of the street and scream the exact same thing. As the rest of the people on the street wonder how to best deal with the raving lunatic (me), would these devout pentecostal Christians once again beg me to tell them the message? Would they feel bad for me or fear me just as the rest of the people on the street do? Jesus spoke to those and worked with those who needed him most, not those who already had their act together. Given this, wouldn't preaching on the street make more sense than preaching in the revival meeting? Wouldn't these devout believers lend more credence to my rantings on the street then?

Speaking in tongues is simply one more example of people engaging in mob mentality. As others behave a certain way, it begins to seem rational. Somebody gets the ball rolling somehow and people continue to escalate the bizarre behavior. We have seen this in religious and non-religious settings time and time again. Many of us have been guilty of succumbing to the influence of passions stoked by a crowd. It's a scary sight and it can lead to dangerous outcomes. We need to see things for what they are, not blindly respect things for what they claim to be. Speaking in tongues may be a harmless, weird way of gaining attention from the gullible. It may also prime people for taking that next step in believing something even more strange. When people are primed to believe anything no matter how outlandish, and they regularly engage in a mob mentality, no good can come of it.