Video: inside a flat Earth conference

[Underseer]

[YOUTUBE]ecfqbWCiZSA[/YOUTUBE]

Transcript oversimplification: it's pretty much the same thing as creationist conferences, climate denialist conferences, anti-vaccine conferences, anti-GMO conferences, etc. It's a bunch of idiots patting each other on the back for supposedly being more expert than the actual experts.

 

[DBT]

I just can't imagine that it's serious.

 

[Underseer]

I just can't imagine that it's serious.

Why? It's not as if they are the only anti-science movement out there. Why would you think they are any less serious than, say, people who believe that GMO are bad for you or people who believe that alternative medicine is good for you?

 

[DBT]

I just can't imagine that it's serious.

Why? It's not as if they are the only anti-science movement out there. Why would you think they are any less serious than, say, people who believe that GMO are bad for you or people who believe that alternative medicine is good for you?

It's just the sheer scale of absurdity. The degree of ignorance it would take to hold a flat earth belief. That wouldn't necessarily stop some people from believing, of course....yet the degree of self deception required is astounding.

 

[Peez]

I just can't imagine that it's serious.

Why? It's not as if they are the only anti-science movement out there. Why would you think they are any less serious than, say, people who believe that GMO are bad for you or people who believe that alternative medicine is good for you?

It's just the sheer scale of absurdity. The degree of ignorance it would take to hold a flat earth belief. That wouldn't necessarily stop some people from believing, of course....yet the degree of self deception required is astounding.

Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.

ascribed to Albert Einstein

 

[Keith&Co.]

yet the degree of self deception required is astounding.

Oh, there's people all over the globe that have convinced themselves they're smarter than the experts.

 

[Peez]

yet the degree of self deception required is astounding.

Oh, there's people all over the globe that have convinced themselves they're smarter than the experts.

Someone has to stand up to the experts!

Peez

 

[WAB]

I just can't imagine that it's serious.

I feel the same way. I don't deny that these people are sincere, perhaps they are. But a small part of my brain favors the idea that this is the ultimate meta-satire.

There are smart people who enjoy poking fun at stupid people; then there are really smart people who enjoy poking fun at smart people who enjoy poking fun at stupid people.

 

[Underseer]

I just can't imagine that it's serious.

Why? It's not as if they are the only anti-science movement out there. Why would you think they are any less serious than, say, people who believe that GMO are bad for you or people who believe that alternative medicine is good for you?

It's just the sheer scale of absurdity. The degree of ignorance it would take to hold a flat earth belief. That wouldn't necessarily stop some people from believing, of course....yet the degree of self deception required is astounding.

More ridiculous than believing that vaccines make people sick when even the most rudimentary understanding of history and biology says otherwise?

Or denying climate change when everyone can see with their own eyes that the leaves turn later and certain animals migrate later? Even if you're too dumb to understand climatology, can't people trust their own fucking eyes more than a propagandist with an obvious financial motive?

Or how about people who believe that this cross-legged hopping counts as "flying"?
[YOUTUBE]NHwhGUo90jw[/YOUTUBE]

Or parents who will literally watch their children die rather than admit that they might be wrong about the efficacy of alternative medicine or prayer?

Or transubstantiation?

Or Platonism?

 

[Underseer]

yet the degree of self deception required is astounding.

Oh, there's people all over the globe that have convinced themselves they're smarter than the experts.

That is very, very common. In addition to the platygaeanists, we have:

Anti-vaccine nuts believe they are more expert than the experts.

Creationists believe they are more expert than the experts.

Climate change deniers think they are more expert than the experts.

Anti-GMO nuts believe they are more expert than the experts.

Geocentrists believe they are more expert than the experts.

Alternative medicine proponents believe they are more expert than the experts.

Theists, alien visitation believers, ancient aliens believers, Bigfoot believers, Loch Ness monster believers, Cupacabra believers, vampire believers, etc. insist their claims are provable based purely on shifting the burden of proof logical fallacies. Not only do they think they're more expert than the experts, but they have delusions of mediocrity that can be credibly debunked by any reasonably inquisitive eight year old.​

And, and, and, and[ent]hellip[/ent]

We'd be here all day if we tried to list them all. It seems like the number of anti-science movements grow more numerous by the decade and the argument they use get correspondingly dumber with each passing decade.

 

[JohnG]

I'm still not convinced that conspiracy/religious nuts are 100% serious. I really think that it's just a game to many (not all) of them. It's more interesting to them to skew reality a bit, throw a wrench into things to mix up the hum-drum. It's all harmless in their opinion. Maybe they feel they will seem more interesting to others too.

I am learning about internet troll culture and that seems to have similarities, but it's in reverse. The trolls say they are doing it just for laughs but they believe in their own made up nonsense.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

A workmate is headed to Kentucky this spring. One of his destinations is the Ark Encounter. He was describing it to me like I'd never heard of it before, really gushing on about how it's an exact replica of Noah's boat that saved the planet, the animals, yadda yadda, yadda.

Because he is a good friend and a bit too religious I did not have the heart to get into a discussion about the anti-science that is the Ark Encounter. I live, after all, in Pennsyltucky and most folks around here are anti-science unless it concerns their health. Medical science seems to be the one exception to their scientific illiteracy, not that they understand biology, rather that it makes them well when they or their parents or their kids have an issue.

My point is that people really believe this stupidity. They really don't know the science and nor are they interested in learning the science.

 

[untermensche]

You can easily believe the Earth is a flat pizza as long as your life doesn't depend on you believing something else.

But if you're putting a satellite into orbit thinking the Earth is a flat pizza will get you in trouble.

This is cult like behavior. You don't believe this stuff very much unless you have other believers around to reinforce it.

It comes from a desire to possess special knowledge in one step. Just believe.

The lazy man's way to acquire amazing knowledge that other's don't have.

This is what all religious behavior is too.

All religions should be classified as cults.

Being an appealing cult to many doesn't make you less a cult.