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Developing Your Bullshit Detectors


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Christopher O'Brien

Christopher O'Brien

Back in the Saddle Aginn
Staff member
(Zen get's it mostly right in this insightful piece. If only most individuals that make up the great unwashed "American Pubic (sic)" had an effective BS meter, we'd all be much better off. —chris)

Article HERE:

"So much deliberate disinformation and crap everywhere.

"We know that the MSM is totally agenda driven and never tells the whole truth and they even say that they telling you “the story”. So we turn to the alternative media to try and find some truth, but that too has become almost as bad if not worse due to all the paid trolls and disinformation agents purposefully confusing and implanting total fabrications into the system. Where you even have to or should I say “especially” have to be careful. Careful of so called whistle blowers who just happen to confirm the stories of other whistle blowers, meanwhile it is all crap. Distraction and confusion taking up our precious time. Time which they want to control, because it takes time for us to join the dots and figure things out. Keeping us under stress, fear and occupied with as much shit as possible to prevent our awakening and eventual freedom.

Developing Discernment

"Developing discernment comes with trial and many errors and a lot of “school-fees”. If you are just starting off in your awakening there is a mass of mine-fields and traps. Most normally start by turning to the “new-age” movement which was totally and especially created for this very purpose.

"The first golden rule should be “anything that takes the power away from you as a totally divine spiritual and free being, avoid at all cost”. No crystal, position of the planets, guru, diet or ET is going to save you. Ultimately you have to awaken and do the work, apply what you are learning and take your power back..."

REST OF ARTICLE HERE:
 
Christopher O'Brien said:
(Zen get's it mostly right in this insightful piece. If only most individuals that make up the great unwashed "American Pubic (sic)" had an effective BS meter, we'd all be much better off. —chris)

Article HERE:

"So much deliberate disinformation and crap everywhere.

"We know that the MSM is totally agenda driven and never tells the whole truth and they even say that they telling you “the story”. So we turn to the alternative media to try and find some truth, but that too has become almost as bad if not worse due to all the paid trolls and disinformation agents purposefully confusing and implanting total fabrications into the system. Where you even have to or should I say “especially” have to be careful. Careful of so called whistle blowers who just happen to confirm the stories of other whistle blowers, meanwhile it is all crap. Distraction and confusion taking up our precious time. Time which they want to control, because it takes time for us to join the dots and figure things out. Keeping us under stress, fear and occupied with as much shit as possible to prevent our awakening and eventual freedom.

Developing Discernment

"Developing discernment comes with trial and many errors and a lot of “school-fees”. If you are just starting off in your awakening there is a mass of mine-fields and traps. Most normally start by turning to the “new-age” movement which was totally and especially created for this very purpose.

"The first golden rule should be “anything that takes the power away from you as a totally divine spiritual and free being, avoid at all cost”. No crystal, position of the planets, guru, diet or ET is going to save you. Ultimately you have to awaken and do the work, apply what you are learning and take your power back..."

REST OF ARTICLE HERE:
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Great intent but, unfortunately for the article, there are a couple of problems. Like this:

"Slowly you start to build a foundation of real knowledge and through your own applications of this knowledge it becomes your own personal truth. Your own experiences and truth, nothing is more powerful."​

Truth stands alone separate from the individual, and it remains true whether your "personal truth" agrees with it or not. Therefore to determine what is or isn't true requires that we set aside our "personal truths", gather objective evidence, apply logic, and learn to accept what is really going on. So let's reject this notion of "personal truth" right away. Another issue I have is:

"Developing discernment comes with trial and many errors and a lot of “school-fees”. If you are just starting off in your awakening there is a mass of mine-fields and traps. Most normally start by turning to the “new-age” movement which was totally and especially created for this very purpose."
​
Is this article really suggesting that we turn to the new-age movement? And then of course there is all the pop-psychology of "deception detection" including "micro-expressions". We touched on in the distant past ( as you may recall ). Sure, I'll accept that we may be able to draw some inferences between body language and sincerity, but I also think it's possible to misinterpret those signs just like it's possible to misinterpret a lie detector. For example, people tend to look away when they are being deceptive. However I know I tend to look away from a person when I'm being analytical. It's hard to focus on looking at someone while recalling facts and figures and doing calculations. So maybe sometimes the "let me think" expression might be misinterpreted as deception.

Anyway, I think the intent of this post, which seems to be advocating the development of our BS detectors, is definitely something people should consider doing, but my suggestion, given many times in this forum, is not to turn to the new age movement, but to learn the skills of critical thinking: Learn the Elements and Standards

Tools To Transform Our Thinking​

​
 
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This is a subject worthy of a thread. Sure, Zen's opinion and posturing has its flaws, and as usual, you choose to accent the flaws and chinks Randall. I think we can collectively think-tank a BS Meter Development Guide. More heads/opinions are better than one. How about coming up w/ a how-to list of developmental tools for the processing and analysis of bullshit. Actually, now that I think about it, this could be the subject of a killer book. :cool:
 
Christopher O'Brien said:
This is a subject worthy of a thread. Sure, Zen's opinion and posturing has its flaws, and as usual, you choose to accent the flaws and chinks Randall. I think we can collectively think-tank a BS Meter Development Guide. More heads/opinions are better than one. How about coming up w/ a how-to list of developmental tools for the processing and analysis of bullshit. Actually, now that I think about it, this could be the subject of a killer book. :cool:
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Thanks Chris. It is a great idea for a thread, and I was hoping you wouldn't think of my post as mere criticism. After all, I would pose the question: Would not the purpose of a BS detector be to, "accent the flaws and chinks". If not for the flaws and chinks, then what reason would we have to conclude that one claim or another is BS? We need tools, and while critical thinking is an excellent one, it's not the only one. It's like the Swiss Army Knife in the toolbox. It's good for determining if a problem is worthy of consideration in the first place, and can often reveal details that aren't immediately obvious, but there are times when specific tools, like the Scientific Method can drill down even deeper into the core of a problem. I know you and many of our forum participants are aware of these concepts, but figured we might as well get them out of the way now rather than excluding them.

Scientific_Method_3.jpg
 
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Exactly my point. The scientific method can only bring you so far. The study of Nature is best served w/ the "Scientific Method." (SM) However, when dealing w/ processes that cannot rely on the restoration of initial conditions, the SM falls short. Not to mention other chinks in the armor i.e., increasing speed of light, is a "constant"? How about, non-locality/Bell's Theorem; holographic theory; the various Many Worlds hypotheses. all the aspects of science that are not fully addressing (or defining) the role of consciousness? There are many tricksterish inconsistencies not being acknowledged as well, etc. IMO, the SM can only take you so far, it's knowing what other analytical tools to utilize when creating and fine-tuning our BS meter. Like fingerprints we are unique and any one sized boilerplate does NOT fit all. We all have a unique role to play within the whole and our individualized BS meter would ideally reflect this.
 
Christopher O'Brien said:
Exactly my point. The scientific method can only bring you so far. The study of Nature is best served w/ the "Scientific Method." (SM) However, when dealing w/ processes that cannot rely on the restoration of initial conditions, the SM falls short. Not to mention other chinks in the armor i.e., increasing speed of light, is a "constant"? How about, non-locality/Bell's Theorem; holographic theory; the various Many Worlds hypotheses. all the aspects of science that are not fully addressing (or defining) the role of consciousness? There are many tricksterish inconsistencies not being acknowledged as well, etc. IMO, the SM can only take you so far, it's knowing what other analytical tools to utilize when creating and fine-tuning our BS meter. Like fingerprints we are unique and any one sized boilerplate does NOT fit all. We all have a unique role to play within the whole and our individualized BS meter would ideally reflect this.
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We could take each example you mention and apply a combination of critical thinking and available scientific knowledge to come up with possibilities that are reasonable, and therefore probably more likely to be true. But one aspect of this discussion I'd like to hear your point of view on ( as well as anyone else who is interested ), is the role of instinct and intuition ( or maybe they're one in the same ). Sometimes I fear that I've become so used to looking at problems from a logical evidentiary perspective that I feel handicapped.

For example, a couple people I've known over the years, who may not have had the same degree of analytical capability on an intellectual level as me ( sorry if that seems immodest ), were still somehow able to read some situations ( particularly social situations ) with uncanny accuracy, leaving me completely boggled in the process as to how they were able to arrive at their conclusion. What exactly is going on there, how can we develop that ourselves, and does it require that we abandon our intellectual analysis?

The best fictional example I can think of is the relationship in Star Trek between Kirk and Spock. Together they make a formidable team, yet Spock is often at a loss to explain why it works when Kirk is prone to operating on instinct and his illogical "gut feelings". It seems to me that both are effective "BS detectors." I've looked at the issue of "Emotional Intelligence", but I'm not sure that what I'm talking about really fits in there either. This is an area I'm completely in the dark about.
 
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Guys, if such a system could be developed under what conditions would you set your filters on ?

Think about all the information and input you receive on a daily basis from the news, food labeling, auto mechanics, the post office, girlfriends, drinking buddies, wives, clerks at stores that couldn't go the extra mile to help you find something etc. In each one of these encounters there lies a potential for a lie with the purpose of separating you from your money to getting you to vote for something that is not to your benefit because it's buried in a innocuous ballot measure or maybe a white lie just to avoid hurting your feelings. That's an awful lot of work, that in itself would cause me more stress than if I lived in ignorance. We are probably lied to from both sides of global warming climate change, who or what is responsible, is it even occurring at all etc.

Im solidly in middle age now and probably have spent 50 + years being lied to by somebody or something. On the things that directly affect me I've used common sense and intuition and it's served me quite well, on those times I was wrong i made lemons out of lemonade. Or I would take precautions and still get bit in the ass because of unforseen acts by an unforseen person setting some chaos theory dynamics into motion.

Out of all those things I just mentioned I think ballot measures is the only thing I'd want a BS meter...though there may be others...but I think first and foremost any talk of filters should be about rules of engagement. What to let pass what to take note of. I don't want to come across as someone who sounds like he has his head in the sand but if if I was a zengardener that means i'd probably be satisfied with karma and just wait for the dust to settle. Maybe at least in some cases ignorance is bliss.

That first golden rule sounds good but the thing is that someone who is trying to take something from you may not be doing so because of evil intent but merely because their interests may be different from yours and just as important to them and may be valid and fair.
 
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I happen to find substantial validity in the "personal truth" theory in all aspects of information gathering, not simply as it relates to the paranormal. For example, I tend to survey at least three credible news sources before personally committing myself to developing an opinion on many issues. I find that's the most balanced approach, not simply taking for granted the credibility of any one source.

It's becoming increasingly more important for me to consider (and then reconsider) the source when receiving and evaluating information. News sources like CNN and Fox are probably the best examples of sources I've recently reevaluated and consciously decided to ignore. Aside from all of the political news, the simple importance of any story seems to be over exaggerated into a bunch of "breaking news" headlines that don't seem that important to me. I always find myself asking "if everything is 'breaking news' then what's really important?" I'm sure many of you feel the same way.
 
I scorn all of those fake news stations, but Fox News has flashing red beacon lights and BREAKING NEWS!!!!!! when an IRS email can't be located and OH MY DAMN!!! The graphics look look like it's DEFCON-whatever; What could they possibly do to increase the hype level graphically if the nukes actually did start dropping?
 
And MSNBC would have a powder blue crawler announcing that World War 3 had started blah Republicans bad..

There I just wanted to badmouth cable news and I realized I meeded to neutalize my anti FOX statement.
 
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