[peacegirl]

Originally Posted by peacegirl

But there are many who believe that free will is true because, in their mind, direct perception shows it to be self-evident. I don't know if you read the quote by Richard Milton since you think he's a fraud, but it certainly applies:

Originally Posted by LadyShea

But those "many" are not here at and there's no reason to think that the "many" you are referring to includes any large percentage of "science minded people" as you claimed.

Milton makes claims like this, too yet fails to provide any specific examples.

Originally Posted by Milton

Whole areas of the western scientific model come in this
category: theories that seem as solid as rock and, indeed, are the
foundations of much of western thinking, yet in reality are at best
unsubstantiated and at worst no more than superstitions:

Originally Posted by LadyShea

What theories is he referring to?

Please read the whole quote and get back to me. I forget what page it's on.

Originally Posted by Milton

there are many examples of Earth beliefs that have been exported the world
over.

Originally Posted by LadyShea

WTF is an "Earth belief"?

I assume it's a belief that appears irresistible based on our limited view of the world.

Originally Posted by Milton

But why should any rational person — let alone a trained
scientist — accept such beliefs?

Originally Posted by LadyShea

Such beliefs as what?

This is why I call him a fraud...what the hell is he criticizing exactly?

He made a lot of sense. He was making a general statement regarding the bias he sees in some scientific circles (not all). Once again, you are too quick to condemn before even understanding what someone is saying. That, to me, is the antithesis of good scientific investigation.

“We are
living in a time of rising academic intolerance in which important new
discoveries in physics, medicine, and biology are being ridiculed and
rejected for reasons that are not scientific. Something precious and
irreplaceable is under attack. Our academic liberty — our freedom of
thought — is being threatened by an establishment that chooses to
turn aside new knowledge unless it comes from their own scientific
circles. Some academics appoint themselves vigilantes to guard the
gates of science against troublemakers with new ideas. Yet science has
a two thousand year record of success not because it has been guarded
by an Inquisition, but because it is self-regulating."