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Michael Shermer Quotes (1954-)
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About Michael Shermer
Michael Shermer (born September 8, 1954) is an American science writer, historian of science, and founder of The Skeptics Society (also its executive director), and editor of its magazine Skeptic.
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βSo, of course, [Duane] Gish's presentation was well received, which it would have been the case had he only gotten up and said "praise the Lord" and sat back down.β
βThe recent medical controversy over whether vaccinations cause autism reveals a habit of human cognitionβthinking anecdotally comes naturally, whereas thinking scientifically does not.β
βWe're all talking about the same thing, whether it's religious people or New Age spiritual people or Buddhists or scientists. We're all talking about having a sense of awe and wonder at something grander than ourselves.β
βAbsolute morality leads logically to absolute intolerance. Once you believe that you have the absolute and final answers to moral questions, why be tolerant of those who refuse to accept your Truth? Religiously based moral systems apply this principle in spades.β
β[N]o such individual would find the Golden Rule surprising in any way because at its base lies the foundation of most human interactions and exchanges and it can be found in countless texts throughout recorded history and from around the world--a testimony to its universality.β
βWithin a decade, maybe two or three, Christians will come around to treating gays no differently than they now treat other groups whom they previously persecuted β women, Jews, blacks β but not because of some new interpretation of a biblical passage, or because of a new revelation from God. These changes will come about the same way that they always do: by the oppressed minority fighting for the right to be treated equally, and by a few enlightened members of the oppressing majority supporting their cause.
Then what will happen is that Christians will take credit for the civil liberation of gays, dig through the historical record and find a few Christian bloggers or preachers who had the courage and the character to stand up for Gay rights when their fellow Christians would not, and then cite those as evidence that were it not for Christianity gays would not be equal.β
Then what will happen is that Christians will take credit for the civil liberation of gays, dig through the historical record and find a few Christian bloggers or preachers who had the courage and the character to stand up for Gay rights when their fellow Christians would not, and then cite those as evidence that were it not for Christianity gays would not be equal.β
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Michael Shermer on Pattern 2 quotes
βHumans are pattern-seeking story-telling animals, and we are quite adept at telling stories about patterns, whether they exist or not.β
Michael Shermer on Pejorative 2 quotes
βScholars who study cults (or, as many prefer to call them by the less pejorative term, βNew Religious Movementsβ) explain that there is no simple answer to the question βWho joins cults?β The only consistent variable seems to be ageβyoung .people are likely to join the cults than older people.β
Michael Shermer on Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
β"This propaganda production would make Joseph Goebbels proud."β
Michael Shermer on Faith
βIn science, all conclusions are provisional, subject to new evidence and better arguments, the very antithesis of religious faith.β
Michael Shermer on Optimism
βOptimism is good for overcoming obstacles that are part of daily life, but over-optimism can blind us to adversities that need addressing.β
What Michael Shermer Said About Others
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Michael Shermer on Kent Hovind
βThat's the best science the Intelligent Design movement has to offer - lots of miracles, a handful of equations, and ten straw examples set against thousands of compelling lines of inquiry. But as often as not, science is not under debate; it is under attack. For example, in my debate at the University of California, Irvine, the Young Earth Creationist Kent Hovind announced as his opening statement, "I am here to win you over to Christ. And I'm here to win Michael Shermer over to Christ." With that statement, Hovind lost the debate. He was not there to debate evolution versus creation or natural versus supernatural design. He was there to witness for the Lord. Everything he said from there on was irrelevant or wrong.β
Michael Shermer on Ayn Rand
βThe cultic flaw in Ayn Rand's philosophy of Objectivism is not in the use of reason, or in the emphasis on individuality, or in the belief that humans are self motivated, or in the conviction that capitalism is the ideal system. The fallacy in Objectivism is the belief that absolute knowledge and final Truths are attainable through reason, and therefore there can be absolute right and wrong knowledge, and absolute moral and immoral thought and action. For Objectivists, once a principle has been discovered through reason to be True, that is the end of the discussion. If you disagree with the principle, then your reasoning is flawed. If your reasoning is flawed it can be corrected, but if it is not, you remain flawed and do not belong in the group. Excommunication is the final step for such unreformed heretics.β
About Michael Shermer
Michael Shermer (born September 8, 1954) is an American science writer, historian of science, and founder of The Skeptics Society (also its executive director), and editor of its magazine Skeptic.