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Old November 3rd 18, 09:37 AM posted to sci.astro.amateur
Paul Schlyter[_3_]
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Default Neil DeGrasse Tyson headed down same loony road as Carl Sagan?

On Fri, 2 Nov 2018 14:35:20 -0700 (PDT), Gary Harnagel
wrote:
On Friday, November 2, 2018 at 12:47:41 PM UTC-6, Paul Schlyter

wrote:

On Fri, 2 Nov 2018 07:57:33 -0700 (PDT), Gary Harnagel
wrote:

On Friday, November 2, 2018 at 8:49:31 AM UTC-6, Paul Schlyter

wrote:

It is not impossible for sudden changes to happen minutes

after
death...

But something very unusual happened at the time of death in all

four
cases. Two of the four had NO anomalous weight change which

happened
after that.

The anomalous weight changes of the other two afterwards must

be due to
some other phenomenon than the change that occurred

simultaneously with
death.


Maybe the weight changes at death also was due to "some other
phenomenon"? Including quirky behavior of the balances... It is

hard
to rule out that possibility without repetitions of the

experiment,
preferably using other kinds of balances.


"May be" "Could be" "might be" "quirky balances" "hard to rule out"


These are all excuses, not refutations.


These are all possibilities which must be ruled out before the
extraordinary claim "we just did weigh the human spirit" can be made
with any credibility. Otherwise you have become a victim of your own
wishful thinking. Even MacDougall himself realized that, and that's
why he wrote that the experiment would have to be repeated many times
before any conclusion could be made.


Again, extraordinary claims


But considering all the NDE evidence that supports existence after

death,
they aren't that "extraordinary."


require extraordinary evidence.


That depends on how you define "extraordinary." I find LOTS of

supporting
evidence, most of it anecdotal, but one would have to be a very

suspicious,
distrusting soul to write off millions of people who report such

experiences
yet have NO evidence to the contrary, IMHO.


OK, let me explain:

If you would say "There's a red car parked outside the house", I
would probably believe you without requiring more evidence. After
all, there are lots of red cars out in the streets, and it's not
remarkable if one of them was parked outside the house.

If you instead would say "There's a spaceship from another planet
parked outside the house, and the aliens are getting out if it now"
then I would **not** just believe your word, instead I would want to
get out to see it with my own eyes.

Likewise if you said "God has revealed himself outside the house by
climbing down from heaven on a huge ladder, accompanied by a myriad
of angels! It's truly a glorious sight - praise God!", then I would
not just believe your words, instead I would want to see it myself.

Likewise if you said "Jim is lying dead in the street outside the
house. His spirit, glowing in green, is flying to and from and
hovering over his body", then I wouldn't just believe your words
either.

I hope this clarifies the difference between ordinary claims and
extraordinary claims.