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Tuesday Blogscan 30-09-2008

A strange assortment to get you through the week…

Enjoy!

Editor
  1. Fundamentalist thinking
    From the JREF’s Swift, this floored me:

    Recently, while reading Sam Harris’ latest essay, I was reminded that there are certain phrases and expressions that I avoid when writing or speaking. One was used by Harris when he asked readers to consider how vice-presidential candidate Palin has “spent the past 44 years on earth.” What’s the alternative that’s so strongly suggested – and even – endorsed – by the use of this phrase? That there is an existence off this planet, and not only in a spacecraft or on the Moon. This is a notion that I’m sure Sam Harris does not embrace in his philosophy. (While I’m at it, I’ll once again plug my rather ignored suggestion made at randi.org/jr/120701.html [search for “capital”] about capitalizing the word “Earth” when it refers to our home planet…)

    Another common usage I avoid is the word “creature,” since this implies that the animal referred to was “created,” though Webster’s Dictionary gives no such connection. A creature – as something created – would require a creator, and I won’t get involved in having to argue my way around that brouhaha…

    Let’s see, we have certain words and phrases that are forbidden because they might result in “wrong thinking?” Doesn’t that sound similar in nature to some religions that, say, ban graven images of Mohammed as blasphemy? I think this falls into self-parody. Sad.

    1. Randi & Big Brother
      I don’t know about Islam, but that certainly sounds as if Randi wishes to stop all crimethoughts through doublespeak measures 😉

      In fact, I’ve always wondered of that grim appearance Randi uses when he’s been photographed; now what does that remind me of? … Oh yeah! 😛

      —–
      It’s not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me…
      It’s all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!

      Red Pill Junkie

  2. You guys might find
    You guys might find interesting Episode #7 of the Black Light in the Attic Podcast where we talk about Technological Singularities. . .what I think makes it nice is that neither of us are very well versed on the subject, atleast we couldn’t quote Kurzweil or anything like that, but we still add some good stuff to the discussion!

    check it out:
    http://blacklightattic.podomatic.com/entry/eg/2008-09-23T07_25_26-07_00

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