Attack on reason and logic?

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William Posted: Wed, Feb 18 2009 7:15 PM

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In the past two or three weeks I have randomly come across some odd and somewhat frequent attacks on free market style thinking, or at least pro left/ proggressive style thinking on main stream type venues. Unfortunatly, in every scenario, my attention was not focused on the arguments at all so maybe I completley misheard.

For example while in a rush, I remember breifly glancing at a book where cognitive scientists "proove" our brains are different and how the lefties has evolved past an 18th century mindset.  I can't remember the name of the book for the life of me.

I also briefly heard a view expressing that logic and reason were white male dominated tools used for oppression, and that we have evolved to better ways.

Am I completley off the mark, and just misheard or misrepresented? Is anyone familiar with these argument?  Is this fairly common (at least with the more trendy type of progressives) and I have been living in the dark? 

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mr_anonymous replied on Wed, Feb 18 2009 7:18 PM

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Dondoolee:

For example while in a rush, I remember breifly glancing at a book where cognitive scientists "proove" our brains are different and how the lefties has evolved past an 18th century mindset

The same scientists who "proved" that blacks were physically and mentally inferior to the white race... ?

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Knight_of_BAAWA replied on Wed, Feb 18 2009 7:20 PM

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It's fairly common among the beret-wearing leftists who try to fool themselves into believing that reality can be changed just by their own thoughts.

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William replied on Wed, Feb 18 2009 7:35 PM

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Maybe it's just because I just moved to NYC.  I think these people are eternally lost, there honestly is no hope.

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Flash replied on Thu, Feb 19 2009 6:40 AM

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Dondoolee:

I remember breifly glancing at a book where cognitive scientists "proove" our brains are different and how the lefties has evolved past an 18th century mindset.

Hilarious, did they also prove that the emperor was not in fact naked?

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maxpot46 replied on Thu, Feb 19 2009 12:35 PM

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Dondoolee:

Maybe it's just because I just moved to NYC.  I think these people are eternally lost, there honestly is no hope.

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Solomon replied on Thu, Feb 19 2009 1:02 PM

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Ahhh, the polylogist panoply of postmodernism is alive and kicking.

Well, not really; or at least I doubt it.  It's probably just the babbling of egalitarian cranks preaching nonsense even they don't believe.

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ladyattis replied on Thu, Feb 19 2009 1:22 PM

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Yeah, solipsism aka PoMo is very much alive, but it's disintegrating as work in neurology and artificial intelligence keeps pulling out the nut-shots with each new discovery and advancement. So, no matter how loud the PoMos screech, they're on their way out, along with the false empiricists (aka positivists).

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fakename replied on Thu, Feb 19 2009 4:52 PM

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If they hate logic so much than I suppose that they should be willing to embrace our logical critiques of their theories since after all, such a stance would be inherently illogical.  But then again, if that stance follows from being illogical than it would also contradict their stance on logic, but then the anti-logic logicians would have to use logic and (brain exploding)...

How anyone could believe this and still be sane, nay still not want to kill themselves, is beyond me!

Clearly, what better proof of the evolved brain structure of the lefty that they could stomach such a theoretical rollercoaster -why their reason is so great it can withstand even contradictions!

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John Ess replied on Thu, Feb 19 2009 5:04 PM

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No reasoning against reason and logic makes any sense.

You only have to worry either if people 1) doubt their own ability to reason and thus defer it to others or 2) use violence, since that is only real way to 'attack' reason anyway.

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AnonLLF replied on Mon, Dec 7 2009 6:28 PM

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God if there's anything(almost)  worse than statism it's nut job postmodernism.If it's not your logic is european and male you should be more broad minded and accepting of african female logic  then it's nonsense about deconstructing the metanarratives of our life rhetorics in progression to the ultimate( hey did I do a good joke of postmodernist psychobabble? ).

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John Ess replied on Mon, Dec 7 2009 7:32 PM

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Chomsky had a great quote countering this idea, it's really Deutch Physik all over again...

"In fact, the entire idea of "white male science" reminds me, I'm afraid, of "Jewish physics." Perhaps it is another inadequacy of mine, but when I read a scientific paper, I can't tell whether the author is white or is male. The same is true of discussion of work in class, the office, or somewhere else. I rather doubt that the non-white, non-male students, friends, and colleagues with whom I work would be much impressed with the doctrine that their thinking and understanding differ from "white male science" because of their "culture or gender and race." I suspect that "surprise" would not be quite the proper word for their reaction."

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Esuric replied on Mon, Dec 7 2009 8:18 PM

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Dondoolee:

In the past two or three weeks I have randomly come across some odd and somewhat frequent attacks on free market style thinking, or at least pro left/ proggressive style thinking on main stream type venues. Unfortunatly, in every scenario, my attention was not focused on the arguments at all so maybe I completley misheard.

For example while in a rush, I remember breifly glancing at a book where cognitive scientists "proove" our brains are different and how the lefties has evolved past an 18th century mindset.  I can't remember the name of the book for the life of me.

I also briefly heard a view expressing that logic and reason were white male dominated tools used for oppression, and that we have evolved to better ways.

Am I completley off the mark, and just misheard or misrepresented? Is anyone familiar with these argument?  Is this fairly common (at least with the more trendy type of progressives) and I have been living in the dark? 

Yes, their goal is to discredit reason and logic (as well as a priori/analytic statements). Once reason and logic are mere memories, their hallucinations/fantasies will become reality (a world were you can't go into business without asking a politician for carbon credits, for example). It's like they think they're the main character in some epic drama/action film, which is probably why they're so into movies and tv. It could explain why they get most of their information from movies/tv.

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Capital Pumper replied on Mon, Dec 7 2009 8:28 PM

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Esuric:

Yes, their goal is to discredit reason and logic (as well as a priori/analytic statements). Once reason and logic are mere memories, their hallucinations/fantasies will become reality

Sounds familiar...

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wilderness replied on Mon, Dec 7 2009 8:42 PM

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Esuric:

Once reason and logic are mere memories...

That's interesting.  Is that a common recognition "memories"?  Because I've seen/read in other forums that same concept "memories" used to describe metaphysics or logic (philosophy in general) to establish their recognition that 'all the world is an illusion' type mantra.

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Esuric replied on Mon, Dec 7 2009 9:00 PM

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Capital Pumper:

Sounds familiar...

Cool, thanks.

wilderness:

Is that a common recognition "memories"?  Because I've seen/read in other forums that same concept "memories" used to describe metaphysics or logic (philosophy in general) to establish their recognition that 'all the world is an illusion' type mantra.

Yes, they keep looking for the "real world," one where they get to control everything and everyone. I think Hegel is largely responsible for modern day Liberalism (it really pisses me off that they're called liberals).