Science IS infallible!

Science doesn't draw conclusions, Humans do.

Scientific method refers to a body of techniques for investigating phenomena, acquiring new knowledge, or correcting and integrating previous knowledge. To be termed scientific, a method of inquiry must be based on gathering empirical and measurable evidence subject to specific principles of reasoning. The Oxford English Dictionary says that scientific method is: "a method of procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century, consisting in systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and modification of hypotheses."
source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_method

in·fal·li·ble adj \(ˌ)in-ˈfa-lə-bəl\
Definition of INFALLIBLE
1: incapable of error : unerring
2: not liable to mislead, deceive, or disappoint : certain
3: incapable of error in defining doctrines touching faith or morals
source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/infallible


Science relies on the Scientific Method to define the contents of it's structure. Any scientific method that can truly be called scientific contains structure for error correction. Fully understanding this lends that only a static view of science can be fallible. The ongoing nature of time and built in error mitigating dynamics of true scientific methods make science self correcting. This ensure that what may be incorrect now in science will be reviewed and corrected over time. Fallibility is temporary in these instances, which truly makes Science infallible.

jazavac - Google Search

State of Contentment: Being a Jerry

I've been seeing this commercial for State Farm insurance lately on television (away on business for a week and the hotel has cable) where a guy who has wrecked his car calls State Farm to report the incident and the State Farm agent reminds him that he has changed insurance companies. He cries and states that he misses the agent on the phone.

This commercial brings back the memory of when I switched from State Farm to GEICO. When I called to cancel they switched me over to the head agent in their office (which will remain nameless) who told me that I would be back.

This is just a little confirmation post to let the world know that switching from State Farm was the best move I ever made. I now have a choice to talk to a person or NOT. Which was the biggest problem with the State Farm agency that I was with. The only choice was to talk to one of the ladies (who were both very nice) but were instructed or otherwise motivated to give you the hard sell on insurance you didn't have... every time that you called... even just to pay your bill. After a while it got old telling them no repeatedly, because no the first time just isn't enough. Obviously I didn't realize how much I needed the insurance so they felt the need to tell me repeatedly. It got old. I switched. Never been happier!

Preemptive Blocking

A while back my wife had posted a pro-gay marriage chain-posting to her facebook wall. One of her friends who shall remain namelessly blocked had a lot to say about what my wife had posted. She is a fundamentalist Christian who believes that rather than the bible being her source of guidance that it should be the guidance for legislature to pander to her personal interpretations of said book. She began responding to my wife's wall post (remember this is on my wife's wall, not the Fundy's) about how gay marriage was wrong and it wasn't in God's plan.. blah blah, ad nauseum.

You can probably tell from my tone that my wife's friend and I were not in agreement on the subject and I, of course, made myself vocal by responding to her posts. I pose logic, she poses belief and we go back and forth five or six times until she finally sends me a private message and blocks me AND MY WIFE! Before that moment I had no idea that you could block people on facebook. And I want to thank that person (you know who you are!) for introducing me to that feature.

Since that time I have blocked quite a few people. At first it wasn't too many. I started with blocking an old friend that I had parted opinions with. He had decided to take a parent-ly role to my daughter's posts. So rather that go into it with him and argue I just blocked him. That way I didn't have to see his posts and he couldn't see mine. It was perfect (and still is) it's like we don't exist to each other on facebook.

The next block came around the time of the Charlie Sheen explosion. I had made a comment on someones post about Charlie and was soon after reprimanded by his ex-wife. A quick block took care of even having to respond to her idiocy. This was looking pretty good.

One of my wife's best friend's kids is in the Navy studying nuclear power. After the Japan earthquake and subsequent meltdown I commented on a common friends post about how hydroelectric power is safer than nuclear. Navy kid started going off on how an area has to be flooded to reserve the water and that an earthquake could result in flooding. And some how that proved that nuclear was safer than hydroelectric. Really?!? Guess what... no argument. Yep, I blocked him. Easy Peasy.

That's when I started blocking folks that I wasn't yet friends with but knew I would have harshly differing opinions with.

When my number of blocked people became double my number of friends I bragged to my daughter about my preemptive blocking methods. She called me a scrooge. I took it a little hard because I expected some level of praise for keeping conflict to a minimum. I started to doubt my methods and considered unblocking everyone I had blocked.

Then I read this facebook post:

Dalai Lama 

Peace is not just the mere absence of violence or disturbance. It's when there is a possibility of conflict, but you deliberately avoid violence and adopt methods to solve the problem through peaceful means. That is real peace.

 Preemptive Blocking = Active Peace

All is well.

 

*Inner Peace: This is so true*

If you can start the day without caffeine,

If you  can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,

If you can resist complaining and  boring people with your troubles,

If you can eat the same food every  day  and be grateful for it,

If you can understand when your loved  ones are too busy to give you any time,

If you can take criticism and  blame without resentment,

If you can conquer tension  without  medical help,

If you can relax without a glass of wine or beer,

If  you can always sleep without the aid of  of a pill,

...Then  You Are  Probably...

The  Family Dog!
 

What in the World is Wrong with Glenn Beck!?! (or... why we need Beck)

Personally, I would prefer to steer clear of Glenn Beck at all costs. His rants know no self control, contain only incidental logic and often make him appear more like a child throwing a tantrum rather than a reasonable adult who may have something of value to say. His latest rant in response to advertisers canceling is espousing his battle with alcoholism as his transformation from 'dirt-bag' to conservative spokesman ('not much above dirt-bag' by his words); and claiming that he will get his message out at any cost, regardless of his employment status with Fox.

Is it just me, or is his alcoholism growing a new head like some sort of 'psychosis hydra'. Doesn't the alcoholic seek alcohol at any cost... doesn't alcoholism make the alcoholic believe that their actions are imperative to life? Isn't alcoholism a disconnected little world where you don't have to acknowledge anyone else as a human being? It seems to me that Beck does the same with conservatism. And he peddles it to conservaholics daily.


Now don't get me wrong, I don't hate Beck... but I would never willingly choose to be in the same room with him either. It's more than likely a leftover trauma from my childhood. Quite plainly, my father is pretty much Beck before Beck was cool. He's the master of emotionally reactive hissy-fits over aspects of life he deems are out of his control. Rather than owning a reaction and adjusting to the situation, people like Beck remain bullheadedly steadfast in their conclusion that 'people make them angry' rather than 'they get angry at people'... the very people they dislike are to blame for their emotional state. Yet they can't see that previously they had been doing the same thing from their side of the table and that the only solution to other people's actions bothering you is to quit looking at what you don't like. The older my dad gets, the more he's realizing this... but I've beat him at learning it by 35 years, so score one for evolution!


The fact of the matter is the world needs people like Beck. I know that it's not an easy thing to accept, but if I am to believe that this is a world made up of evolutionary processes (and I do believe that) then we need Glenn Beck to be as crazy as ever. The reason is that there are many people who agree with Beck's irrational conclusions. These people are at any range of progress on their personal evolutions. If Beck were to calm down just a bit he would continue to influence these folks ever so slightly, gather most of them into his deluded paranoia ever so slowly so they don't notice how crazy he is OR how crazy they are becoming.


I know that growing up with my Beck-like father gave me some jaded views of the world and some unrealistic expectations which caused me quite a few problems (not as extreme as alcoholism, but it could have easily been if I liked alcohol); however, it is my father's extreme attitude that woke me up from my learned fallacies and misguided ideals to see the world for what it really is and to be able to see ALL people as people... people evolving unto their own perfection. The evolution process is rarely pretty to the observer, but for the subject of the experience it is the stuff of miracles. Once we realize this, the evolutionary process takes us on a roller coaster ride reviewing all of our past mistakes as learning experience, knowing that new mistakes will be made and learned from as well. Evolutionarily Beck just isn't there yet and watching him evolve is uncomfortable for me.


I don't think those that watch him loyally notice the evolution taking place... and making money at what he does may keep him from evolving out of the blaming complaining attitude, money can be pretty addictive. Regardless, it is Beck's extreme behavior and attitude that will wake up those currently evolving into mini-Becks... we need him to show them how crazy he is BEFORE they are so used to it that it doesn't seem crazy.


We need Glenn Beck to do what he does best... be the volatile catalyst that motivates the evolution of conservatives into human beings.


Go Beck Go!

Angry Badger

                 I don't know what you did, but man it's pissed!              

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