-=> Quoting Troy H. Cheek to Paul Andinach <=-
 FA>> I  find  it  amusing  that dozens  of highly  educated people  are
 FA>> dismissed as foolish, and  warped, fantasy  prone, missing  the facts,
 FA>> yet one man, is God. One man cannot be in error.
 PA> Indeed, that's a very amusing idea. Where did you get it from?
 THC> From various "skeptics" who will agree with just about anyone who says
   ... and so on. Yes, but I asked because I got the impression that that's 
what he thought that I thought.
 PA> Sagan's statements are based on evidence that can be followed, tested, 
and
 PA> reproduced.
 THC> Have _you_ followed them?  Tested and reproduced them?
   It's a fair cop, guv. No, I haven't, because I'm too lazy; but because 
Sagan lists his sources I can go and find out if he's telling the truth, 
should that become necessary. He knows that by listing sources, he makes it 
possible to
check on his statements, and that's an incentive to tell the truth. The fact 
that he has listed his sources and made himself subject to verification makes 
him more trustworthy, because it suggests he's not trying to hide something.
 PA> As opposed to, say, somebody who believes that they met an alien.
 PA> Where is the evidence? How can I know that he's telling the truth?
 THC> Where's the evidence that mixing vinegar and baking soda produces
 THC> carbon dioxide gas?  Sure, you can test it yourself, IF you have
 THC> access to the materials. However, if you don't have access, you can't
 THC> test it, so you don't really know one way or another.  Maybe, if you
 THC> see enough claims by other people who do have access and say that it
 THC> does happen, you'll believe it.  But you don't, for instance, say that
 THC> because you can't test it, it doesn't happen.
   I'm not trying to say that because I can't test it, it doesn't happen. I'm 
trying to say that because I can't test it, I can't be as sure as some people 
seem to be that it does happen.
   The baking soda's a bad analogy, because it doesn't, in the big picture, 
really matter to my life if I believe in baking soda. A visit by aliens would 
have wide-reaching ramifications, so I have to be more cautious.
Paul
... "It's only a crime against humanity. We have no jurisdiction." - 
_Melissa_  
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