AOL News: "U.S. Beliefs in Pseudoscience Worry Experts"

[Epistis]

AOL News released an article this morning discussing the increasing belief in pseudoscience. (Astrology, aliens, bigfoot, etc; but also implicating the Law of Attraction)

Here is the URL for the story:
Top News- U.S. Beliefs in Pseudoscience Worry Experts - AOL News

I have posted a follow-up (reaction) to the article on Epistis.Org:
A Reaction: AOL News “U.S. Beliefs in Pseudoscience Worry Experts” » Epistis.Org: Articles on Law of Attraction, Metaphysics, Health, Wealth, and Happiness.

[cylon]

Oh no! The experts are worried!

I went through a couple years there where I wanted people to stop believing what I didn't think was real. That somehow exposing their stupidity would make the world a better place. But it's none of my business what resides in someone's skull.

[persephonevii]

The experts.

It doesn't matter what they say. You can't make people believe in science or astrology if they don't want to. They will believe in science or astrology, however, if they want to.

[MyFutureSelf]

I think the words experts and specialists get mixed up all too often haha.

[Narz]

They're just jealous cause Bigfoot and aliens don't visit them and they're ancestors are monkeys. When Jesus comes back and slays the nonbelievers, they we'll see who's laughing!

[Steve Pavlina]

I imagine that worry experts typically find a great deal to worry about.

I'm a blogging expert, so my specialty is finding things to blog about. This would probably worry a worry expert.

[Dani]

Originally Posted by Epistis

Here is the URL for the story:
Top News- U.S. Beliefs in Pseudoscience Worry Experts - AOL News

Why would anyone believe in a 'Pseudoscience Worry Expert' ?

Sounds like an odd job to me.

[JHL]

Its worrying that people may or may not be worried about what people who are paid to worry are worrying about. It also makes me nervous.

[Mr. Punch]

Astrology, aliens and much of the discussion on these boards on LoA seems to me to be a waste of time at the very least.

I don't get it, good people: REAL science is much much more interesting, beautiful and aweinspiring than the fairytales and crude and openly false beliefsystems you cling to. Is it because there is some instant relief and gratification in the simple worldviews of pseudoscience? A lot of people are now all sold on the LoA idea which is an interesting but also pretty banal concept that gets taken to such extremes on these boards ("How can stillborn babies intend their premature death?"). You are bound to get disappointed and look pretty infantile trying to explain the randomness and meaninglessness of life away.

But maybe that is the point; Intellectual honesty is not a virtue held in high esteem in this utilitarian society. "In the end, it all comes down to this fact: Every human has to do whatever it takes to be happy." Well, not at any cost, in my opinion. Of course it's a comforting belief for 44% of the American population that they are certain that Jesus is going to come down from the clouds like a superhero in the next 50 years and set eveything straight. But beside being a totally unfounded belief, it also has a huge impact on American policy and therefore on world affairs.

You think you can get everything for free belief-wise, but false beliefs come with a cost - and we are all paying for the intellectual laziness and irrationality of our fellow citizens.

[ionsteed]

Well said, Mr. Punch, although I don´t believe production to be the only thing of importance in society. You talk about happiness, and what creates happiness is a complicated matter.

[Narz]

Well said Punch.

People want to have their cake, eat it too, visualize it as an apple, and not gain weight.

[Cron]

Not every belief that everyone has is true. If you are a person who is concerned with knowing what the truth is at some point you will ask others and ask yourself how you "know" what you know.

The scientific method is the best, if not the only method that humanity has come up with for discerning, reliably, what the truth is.

It may not tell you what you want to hear, but if you use it without cutting corners it will tell you the truth:


Introduction to the Scientific Method

[Michael Chui]

Originally Posted by Mr. Punch

Astrology, aliens and much of the discussion on these boards on LoA seems to me to be a waste of time at the very least.

There is no such thing as a waste of time.

Originally Posted by Mr. Punch

REAL science is much much more interesting, beautiful and aweinspiring than the fairytales and crude and openly false beliefsystems you cling to.

It sounds to me like you don't know what real science is, yourself.

The scientific method is the best, if not the only method that humanity has come up with for discerning, reliably, what the truth is.

Incorrect. The scientific method is the process by which a hypothesis is tested for falsehood. It does not, and cannot, discover truth. It is premised on the assumption that predictability exists and repeatability confirms. One of the chief theist attacks on science, unsurprisingly, is on these assumptions. See Pastafarian canonical belief: "But what our scientist does not realize is that every time he makes a measurement, the Flying Spaghetti Monster is there changing the results with His Noodly Appendage."