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From: jlg@lanl.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.crypt
Subject: Re: article in net.general
Message-ID: <15420@lanl.ARPA>
Date: Tue, 30-Oct-84 16:52:43 EST
Article-I.D.: lanl.15420
Posted: Tue Oct 30 16:52:43 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 2-Nov-84 04:37:41 EST
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Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory
Lines: 29

, Creationism, etc.) try to use the
language and arguments of science to promote something which has none of
the characteristics of a science.  If the supporters of ESP and other
pseudo-sciences were to classify their belief as metaphysical, and stop
trying to make the rest of us accept their strange 'religon', that would
be fine.

Some have argued that these pseudo-sciences should be accepted as possible
and studied out of a sense of intellectual fairness.  This has two problems
with it.  First, it means that we have to study all new theories, even the
real 'off the wall' speculations of people with no scientific background.
Without any evidence of the plausibility of a theory 'a priori', it
would be silly to run around checking out all these bizarre theories.

Second, every time that such topic HAVE been addressed scientifically, the
results are ambiguous or negative.  However, the proponents of the pseudo-
science then proceed to either redefine the phenomenon (making the scientific
study irrelevant), or to denounce the scientific team for allegedly 'covering
up' the 'truth'.  Real sciences don't have this slippery effect.

One tactic of the pseudo-scientist is to take his case to the general
public, either in sensational reports or public pleas that the scientific
community is trying to silence them.  Propaganda is not a scientific
technique though.  And even if this ploy succeeds in converting large
numbers of supporters, the scientific merit of the field hasn't improved
one bit.  The universe isn't a democracy - reality doesn't care what
people think.

Anyway, is this the correct topic for net.crypt?