Not sure I follow… Is the implication that religion is magical thinking, and therefore harmful to society? Because if so, I agree.
If you really are interested in this concept, I highly recommend reading “The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark” by Carl Sagan. In fact, it should be required reading for every adult human.
He explains why this stuff is harmful way better than I ever could.
There are always elements of ‘magical thinking’ in our lives. There is a lot that cannot be explained by the logical, such as human behaviour. And sometimes we have these fantasies in our head, even though they are impossible or…out there.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that on some level, ‘magical thinking’ is innate to all of us and isn’t something that should be discouraged. Obviously it shouldn’t override hard facts but if they do and no one stands to be harmed…just let people be wrong and start on the process of learning.
Again, if you actually care to learn more about this position, I highly recommend reading A Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan. Like I said, he does a much better job explaining what I’m attempting to say.
I’m not talking about people just “being wrong,” and then learning. That isn’t what’s happening.
And no, magical thinking is not part of everyone’s life, and it absolutely should be discouraged.
How are we defining magical thinking here? Are we talking about anything illogical or specifically the unironic my-Hogwarts-letter-got-lost-in-the-post types?
I’ll definitely give that book a read, thanks for the recommendation.
Magical thinking, or superstitious thinking,[1] is the belief that unrelated events are causally connected despite the absence of any plausible causal link between them, particularly as a result of supernatural effects.
Just because a lot of people do something, that doesn’t make it safe. Drinking alcohol is harmful, but accepted by a lot of people.
The argument against all magical thinking is a bit of a slippery slope argument, so it’s not perfect. That being said, do you really think most people actually believe knocking on wood will prevent something bad from happening? If someone truly believes that their superstitious rituals have an effect on objective reality, then yes, that is very harmful. If someone bases their beliefs on something other than evidence, that person is not only unequipped to make good decisions, but also an easy mark that can be taken advantage of.
Dude, we make decisions based on things like gut feelings and other things that aren’t solid evidence all the time. We often aren’t even aware of doing so.
We aren’t Spock. We aren’t particularly data-driven beings. We make decisions such as who to date on things like the way they look, they way they talk. We pick our food based on what tastes good over what would be the most beneficial nutritionally. We get excited over made up things that happen on a screen.
I’m sorry, but if you want to ban flat-earthers because their illogicality makes them an easy target for right wing extremists, there’s a metric fuck ton more people you’d have to ban alongside them for the same reasons. By that point you probably don’t have a social network anymore.
Sorry, that is not what I meant to convey. There are many reasons for doing things outside of pure logic and pure superstition. It’s not a dichotomy.
When I drink poison, beer for example, that’s not a logical choice, but it’s also not based on magical thinking. Pleasurable sensations and personal preferences are real things that exist. Doing something because it makes you happy is very different from doing something because your priest or guru told you to do it.
Not sure I follow… Is the implication that religion is magical thinking, and therefore harmful to society? Because if so, I agree.
If you really are interested in this concept, I highly recommend reading “The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark” by Carl Sagan. In fact, it should be required reading for every adult human.
He explains why this stuff is harmful way better than I ever could.
There are always elements of ‘magical thinking’ in our lives. There is a lot that cannot be explained by the logical, such as human behaviour. And sometimes we have these fantasies in our head, even though they are impossible or…out there.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that on some level, ‘magical thinking’ is innate to all of us and isn’t something that should be discouraged. Obviously it shouldn’t override hard facts but if they do and no one stands to be harmed…just let people be wrong and start on the process of learning.
Again, if you actually care to learn more about this position, I highly recommend reading A Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan. Like I said, he does a much better job explaining what I’m attempting to say.
I’m not talking about people just “being wrong,” and then learning. That isn’t what’s happening.
And no, magical thinking is not part of everyone’s life, and it absolutely should be discouraged.
How are we defining magical thinking here? Are we talking about anything illogical or specifically the unironic my-Hogwarts-letter-got-lost-in-the-post types?
I’ll definitely give that book a read, thanks for the recommendation.
So, wait, you think literally any superstitious thinking is harmful? That literally is something most people do to one extent or another.
Just because a lot of people do something, that doesn’t make it safe. Drinking alcohol is harmful, but accepted by a lot of people.
The argument against all magical thinking is a bit of a slippery slope argument, so it’s not perfect. That being said, do you really think most people actually believe knocking on wood will prevent something bad from happening? If someone truly believes that their superstitious rituals have an effect on objective reality, then yes, that is very harmful. If someone bases their beliefs on something other than evidence, that person is not only unequipped to make good decisions, but also an easy mark that can be taken advantage of.
Dude, we make decisions based on things like gut feelings and other things that aren’t solid evidence all the time. We often aren’t even aware of doing so.
We aren’t Spock. We aren’t particularly data-driven beings. We make decisions such as who to date on things like the way they look, they way they talk. We pick our food based on what tastes good over what would be the most beneficial nutritionally. We get excited over made up things that happen on a screen.
I’m sorry, but if you want to ban flat-earthers because their illogicality makes them an easy target for right wing extremists, there’s a metric fuck ton more people you’d have to ban alongside them for the same reasons. By that point you probably don’t have a social network anymore.
Sorry, that is not what I meant to convey. There are many reasons for doing things outside of pure logic and pure superstition. It’s not a dichotomy.
When I drink poison, beer for example, that’s not a logical choice, but it’s also not based on magical thinking. Pleasurable sensations and personal preferences are real things that exist. Doing something because it makes you happy is very different from doing something because your priest or guru told you to do it.
Carl Sagan does a better job of explaining it.