Month: November 2009

Talking of healthy debate, the AGW debate is a debate – a debate about what to do for the best hopefully, rather than a debate about whether it’s “science” and whether it’s “proven” – I refer to my previous post – what a waste.

George Monbiot has been blogging on the recent backlash, so I’m sure George is probably one contribution to Clive James’s impression that there are more sceptical scientific views of AGW than there were. Unfair to chide Clive for suggesting that no one could claim the “the science is in” – as George suggests it is only ever in so far as it is … ever in. And that from someone who claims to be a serious defender of sceptical science as opposed to the writer of a light-hearted mgazine essay. Lighten up George – oh wait a minute – satire is OK when it’s on the other foot.

This is mostly not about science, it’s about conspiracy paranoia. Belief and scepticism can both lead to unwise acts of hypocrisy when dealing with paranoia.
(redcar.ac.uk …. I like it.)

What a waste.

A new post from Chris Locke after a 6 month hiatus at Mystic Bourgeoisie.

I think Chris is getting closer to his agenda – the “but I’m not new-age” meme – is a meme defined by new-ageism. He’s right there, the problem of “Numinous Lunacy and Sanctimonious Narcissism” as he calls it, is memetic. Not surprising “following” purveyors of such stuff on twitter captures plenty of content – like accepting spam comments in blogs and wikis, except in twitter you are pre-accepting it – in the interests of research, naturally, with his sceptical wits about him. The “difficult times” tweet from James Arthur Ray is a peach.

I agree with Chris that it is dangerous to delve into the paradoxical morass between objective reality and … err … faith-based religion, that is, there are risks in being misled by what you perceive, confusing metaphor with any kind of empiricism. Proceed with caution, with scepticism, yes, clearly. But where I part with Chris is in somehow seeing the whole idea (of even considering those uncertainties) as part of some evil conspiracy, off limits. It’s  a problem meme / memeplex. We agree it is a big timeless and perennially relevant problem. And a problem that is getting worse, paradoxically, as unmediated publication gets ever easier in our global village.

Genuinely interested to see what the outcome of the deeper right wing “Indian” research throws up. Keep on blogging MB.

Another one to add to the list of brain lesions / malfunctions as clues to the workings of mind. Faced with an otherwise fully functioning brain and the total inability to communicate Belgian Rom Houben, simply had to dream to fill his time – for 23 years !

[Today – Sat 28th – apparently scientific scepticism about his actual state & recovery. And I have to say listening to the interview with another PVS / Locked-in patient (Martin ?) – via the communication system – I’m sceptical if the description is representative of the Houben case.]

A mere blogging tool no longer.

Excellent piece by Clive James on Belle de Jour. (Nov 15, 2009 is the relevant post.)

[A man of the world like CJ claims never to have even met a sex worker? He should get out more. BTW re-read Clive’s piece a couple of times … it really is excellent material.]

Hey, if Blackburn’s Givet transferred to Liverpool, the latter would have the partnership of Givet Ngog.

(HT to Sylvia)