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OnTheWayOut,
We’re all welcome to our opinions. That you think I express mine to imply something beyond what it actually say is no more than transposing your opinion onto what I’ve said as though that’s what I was really saying. It’s a common mistake.
Whatever is my opinion I’m always happy to answer for it and if need be clarify. I do not hide behind my views. And, as best I can I try to avoid expressing an opinion beyond what I can prove. Possibilities I express as that, but no more. Probabilities I express as that, but no more. Absolutes I express as that, but no more. Importantly, when I’m wrong I want to know it.
Asking for proof of claims made is what everyone should do. It avoids so many idiotic conclusions people end up concocting by having transposed their view onto what someone else has said as though that’s what the other person said.
“Your ignorance ("I don't understand") of people's thoughts contrary to your own sounds contrived.”
I gave up mind-reading a long time ago, and particularly from written statements in online forums like this. Trying to read people’s thoughts from words keyboarded onto an online discussion forum is pure folly. It’s better to respond to what’s spelled out.
“I suggest that you are defending your friends without any real knowledge of the specific facts. I suggest you want people to read your blog and go to your friends' website, for whatever personal reasons you and they might have, but that accusations on JWN turn people off to that. There. All I have to do is use your buzzwords and it's all alright. No accusations, just suggestions.”
I have no problem with you expressing those things of me. But if you want a rational person to accept it you’ll have to do what everyone else has to do. You’ll have to prove it with something beyond your opinion. Opinions are worth no more and no less than whatever rational reasons a person can give for holding them.
I do not defend bad behavior, no matter who’s doing it.
I do not care if anyone here reads my blog or not. It benefits me personally in no way whatsoever. My blog is purely a way for me to share research for the day when I’m unable to do so. Whoever wants to read it, it’s there for. Basically my blog is a means to archive information for when it’s needed by an individual, if ever. Sometimes it helps me by having it to reference rather than keyboarding the information from scratch.
I don’t know what web site you think I want people to go read. I don’t advertise other web sites on my blog, with the exception of AJWRB.
“In the strictest sense, if (A) people had the potential to be hurt by a situation, and (B) someone makes a specific claim that they were hurt, then there is no actual proof that (B) really happened. Ultimately, it is up to people to decide that, as it would be "sheer nonsense" to provide actual email exchanges on JWN to prove something, and then to know that someone will say they just made those up.”
People can believe whatever they want. That does not make the belief rational. It only makes it a belief. Rational belief can and does withstand scrutiny. Folks who want to hold rational beliefs will always demand evidence in the way of proof, and they will always scrutinize claims with lots of questions.
“But I give people way more credit than I suggest that you do for being able to determine who is telling a truth and who is lying, who is deleting emails and not remembering or is conveniently forgetting.”
I don’t presume either way. What I do is ask questions of proposed evidence to measure veracity. I also examine whatever is disclosed in the way of evidence to see if the details work as presented. In the end a claim is either corroborated or it’s not. If it’s not corroborated it means no more and no less than the claim is unproven.
“In the long run, none of what is said on JWN has any proof to it. Even articles from the news are not proof of something. For all I know, Zed is Dead was never actually baptized as a Jehovah's Witness and Marvin Shilmer is just another avatar made up by Simon to stir things up here. Of course, I might be another one too.”
It’s preposterous to think nothing said on JWN has any proof to it. What in the world are you thinking to say such a thing?
Proof means no more and no less than corroboration of a claim to the extent it is asserted. To think nothing said here has any proof to it is to think nothing said here can be corroborated! That’s nonsense.
Marvin Shilmer
