Quote:Illogical. First you beg the question, then you follow with a non-sequitor. What is the skepticism you prize so well? In the universe of propositions concerning some matter, the proposition that A is true, or that B is true, and the proposition that "not A" is true, are all equally propositions, as is the proposition that "one cannot tell with the evidence at hand".
george
Humans are not mere proposition-making machines and human cognition is not well described by a skeleton of bleached Boolian bones.
The proposition, held by a Saskatchewan Neo-Nazi Ladies Auxilliary president, that "Jewish bankers rule the world while not engaging in pedophilia" is a proposition. It's 'negation' - "Well, I rather doubt it" - apparently sits shoulder to shoulder with the original in that universe of propositions.
What is the connection, george, between beliefs and what actually is so? We know, for example, that all cultures have their particular origin stories and they are each unique, and each held to be true tales by the folks who were raised in those cultures. Certainty is no measure that what is actually so is being reflected. But we can be certain that the ideas will be held with tenacity. Yet members of any of these cultures, no matter how ancient or unsophisticated, if put aboard the space shuttle, would see that the earth is actually a sphere, or if given long enough and given the proper intellectual resiliency, will understand the lengths of time necessary for geologic formations such as mountains.
Do all voices have an equal right to political advocacy, you ask rhetorically? Sure. Let's take, as an example, LASML (Lesbians Against Strip Mining, Marxist Leninist). Or the Hell's Angels, or Nambla, or Brits For Crop Circle Worship or Christian Conservatives for Theocracy in America. Let them paper the telephone poles and construction site fences. And, when they move into positions approaching real power in the polity, then what? My response will be to say 'this group has these values/ideas, and they are a danger'. After all, this is the way you commonly speak regarding 'secularists', so that ought to be permissable to you.
I'm sorry if the above is a bit disjointed...I fear it might be, but I'm too tired to judge.
Aside from all else...sincere best wishes and a merry christmas to you and your family.