I know this is unrelated to this comment you made 7 years ago but could you do a video about or opinion on “you can choose your beliefs” it’s really annoying when someone says that in a conversation.
If right wingers and left wingers are so different. Why can’t we just separate before we do irreparable damage to each other? At least we’ll have left on better terms than if the fighting never stopped. You’re an atheist for example, but my sense of self stems from God and it’s not going to change or go away because of that. I tried to hear what atheists had to say, and contrary to what you might expect having such an integral part of myself challenged isn’t going well. I don’t want to change myself, I love myself. I’m willing to bet that atheists feel the same way. Trying to change what is core to someone else’s human psyche will leave it split in two. Why should we continue to threaten each other if we’d be happier apart? At least for now. I tried to “become an atheist” or at least challenge my views by watching atheistic content. And I fell further away from what made me, me. What I was originally. The same may not be true for you.
@@marcusjohnson3766 you can carry on believing in God but to separate people based on their beliefs is wrong. It also prevents many theists from becoming atheists and from what I have read that transition is often one of the most enlightening experiences of one's life.
@@arya6085 You don’t understand me. I don’t want to separate people. I was trying to learn more about myself through asking that question. But you’re right it’s never okay to separate people so thanks I guess. No one can fix me and I’ve never belonged. I felt death ☠️ before and it sickens me. I’m destined for pain and death but want to avoid it. All I think I do is hurt people so please don’t presuppose that I want to do that to you you’ll just make me worse.
I can't stop laughing at your example of "I'm sure if I came around and slapped you round the face , we could have a fascinating discussion of all the people I remind you of". Your sense of humor is amazing 😂
My dad proudly said once that "'I don't know' is never an acceptable answer." He's the kind of guy who believes freedom of religion only applies to him.
Theists tend to hate "I don't know" because they know it's an acceptable and honest answer. They would rather presuppose a god cuz they like the feeling. Just look at young earth creationists who actively deny favts, simply because they disprove their god creation myth.
The opposite of that is more frequently true in the big questions. It’s a brave and honest answer (although it shouldn’t have to be brave), and then you know you’re talking to an authentic person. Less often so when the question is ‘who ate all the chocolate biscuits?’
'You can not say that something is wrong without experience on the field.' -You don't have to say something is 'wrong' - it's the burden of the proponent to support their claim, not the sceptic to show it's 'wrong'. The sceptic merely asks for evidence - without which, the claim is not supported.
to be fair you are believing in the false memory claim without proof. i personally believe in their claims, especially since there are multiple people claiming memory. and there would hypothetically be interests by the cult in discrediting the witnesses/victims. also DID (dissociative identity disorder) is a thing, where the mind splits in reaction to traumatic events. the alters/identity fragments may have self conceptions outside of what is physically true to cope with their trauma. but then again, while i have many personal accounts that cover this theory, i am not 100% on it, just skeptic and wanting to share my skepticism with you.
@@mivical personal accounts are finicky. We can't actually experience them ourselves to notice possible inconsistencies and we're not sure how much of the shared personal accounts are influenced by suggestion, expectations of events, or any other external influence which could have affected all of them. In a scientific environment all the variables should be controlled to minimize that but in the areas of pseudoscience he touches on in this video, manipulation of events to get a certain outcome is common even if unwitting.
I take offense at the concept that chickens are lazy. My chickens are very active. I even have a chicken that jumps 15 feet directly up into the barn rafters to go to sleep at night. Sure, she could sleep near ground level in the coop with the other chickens... but she's hardcore, and wants an eagle eye view of the world around her. She is the eagle eyed chicken.
My friend has a neighbor with chickens and a few of them got into his yard, we had to spend over an hour trying to herd them back where they were supposed to be, I wouldn't call them lazy after that experience.
'BTW, by that definition, "kiwis" include "agnostic atheists".' -Nope. 'Kiwis' as defined in this video are positive claims of actual processes/phenomena. That can by no stretch be applied to agnostic atheists, who make no positive claim of any processes/phenomena - they merely disbelieve positive claims made by theists. Atheists aren't the ones defining gods - they're the ones responding to definitions offered to them by theists.
@@alexbeauchamp8627 he made with his brother QualiaSoup. You can find it at QualiaSoup's channel (nowadays it's just archive, since he doesn't make videos anymore but instead helps TheramingTrees).
Essentially as honest atheists, we should admit a degree of uncertainty as to whether there are definitely no gods or paranormal forces in existence. Highly unlikely but not altogether impossible, to argue certainly leads to burden. I think that an atheist relates to theism (& deism) similarly to how an asexual person might relate to the act of sex... stay with me! ... We just aren't into it (some of might have tried it on the past), don't really wanna talk about it, don't want to hear the neighbors doing it on Sunday morning, don't wanna hear details about how you/ whoever does it, don't wanna get invited to group experiences... It's just a thing that's not on our radar. It's pointless debating most theists as faith is not receptive of unsuitable fact.
I used to believe in crystal healing a bit, then later realized that it was just me deciding to be comforted by these objects, whether it be because of their appearance, texture, or malleability. Beauty has a pretty big impact on your life outlook if you allow yourself to be comforted by the objects you've delegated to comfort you.
every time I read a comment like this I have my faith in humanity restored just a little. Far too many people refuse to question their beliefs, instead they defend them beyond reason.
@Vault Door "That is not what we observe" who are "we" and please tell me where you see "Most people are lying..." If you are going to expect others to justify their positions then you should do the same.
@Vault Door Have you looked out of the window recently? Is the whole world around you in chaos? When I look out of my window I see a reasonable society that is trying to generally move along, there are as many different pulls as there are people but they are not at each others throats. There is even the argument that many lies are told in an effort to "support" others as in the "no that looks great on you". Societies are working examples of people getting on, perfectly no, but all accepting that progress is made together. To get a better and pleasanter outlook try reading Steven Pinker's "The better angles of our Nature" as he discusses the steady reduction of violence in human society over time. He gives an overview in a TED talk
I can't express in a comment how your videos have helped me. You give clear and eloquent language to thoughts that have been nebulous in my mind for years. Your work is touching, brilliant, helpful, and kind. Thank you!
@@johndelong5574 to scared to say what you want to say, so you hide behind cryptic slogans. It's clear where you're coming from. Do us a favor, stay hidden behind the couch and don't touch the keyboard. For even cowards transform themselves into idiots after several drinks.
'it really turns into a lot of "all the teachers are out to get me!"' -Some students did feel that some teachers were 'out to get them'. And in a couple of cases, I think they were right: there was evidence of some focussed bullying, which as a matter of interest has, in the last few weeks, put the institute in serious trouble. But nope, personally I don't think the staff I had trouble with were 'out to get me'. I think they were simply inept, negligent and corrupted by pseudoscience.
I'm no big therapy-pusher - I've never suggested to anyone in my personal life that they take themselves to therapy. And one of the arguments I had at the centre depicted in this video was that they were trying to get students to keep their clients in therapy - 'Fight to keep them!' we were told. I found this outrageous. Therapy is as useful as the client finds it - no more. It's the client who determines the benefit - and who have absolute autonomy to leave when they feel ready.
Religion is pretty easy to understand once you realize that it is a perfect reflection of basic human needs. It isn't really about addressing the truth, it's about addressing our own wants. For example, there is a basic human NEED to be able to explain everything. This NEED causes people to accept false conclusions (how we got here, what our purpose is, what happens after we die, etc). On the other hand, a DESIRE to be able to explain everything is a great benefit to us, as it is the driving force behind scientific development and understanding. It's a fine line between a need and a desire. One way to fill the gap is saying 'I don't know', the other way is to use religion.
Also, the need to feel loved, the need to have an authority figure, the need for repetition and ritual, the need for social acceptance, the fear of death, the fear of punishment. The list really does go on...
'As a Reiki practitioner i just cant see how you can call it a pseudo science' -Then could you explain what the word 'Reiki' means - and give an account of the evidence for it?
Amazing... I particularly liked the personal story about how even someone out to be skeptical and rational by pursuing an education in psychology can find themselves up to their eyeballs in pseudoscience.
@@anitahyche1 I think the closest thing I have to a phobia is ending up in a mental ward. Once people believe you to be insane, there is no convincing them otherwise. It's a sentence that can end up far worse than prison, with no end in sight and often worse treatment, including being drugged, restricted and sensorily deprived.
Except... you know... if you're being closed minded? Refusing to take in account the valid proof that they're giving you because it goes against what you believe? People wrongly accusing other people of being closed minded does not mean closed mindedness does not exist
"...some true believers waking up from their illusions only to discover they don't have skills in any other trade leading them to continue in a profession they privately reject" This explains my own situation so exactly.
I'm familiar with the Newmaker tragedy from another video I watched many years ago - and wasn't entirely surprised to see it appear here. But, to this day, it still makes my blood run cold. It's genuinely hard to believe that something so corrupt, disturbing, and dark could happen, perpetrated by real people against a real victim. Incredibly saddening and troubling.
'Is the story about the developmental psychology course true or fictional?' -Depressingly true. It wasn't purely a developmental psychology course - that's just one of the range of seminars that we had on the course. Two of us from my class ended up leaving. Many students said complaining was futile, or wanted to just keep their heads down and just get through it. But as I said to heads, if I don't tell you the problems the responsibility's mine; if you don't listen the responsibility's yours.
tamsinthai. It appears your account isn't set up for replies. Be great if the world was as simple as your comment suggests. Unfortunately, the world is more complex, subtle and unexpected and cursory glances at syllabuses don't necessarily reveal anything about the 'batshit craziness' of an institute's employees. In my particular case, I had much more than a cursory glance at a syllabus which promised - but didn't deliver - a strong focus on scientific literature. During the application process I also put some serious questions to my interviewer about the institute's stance on research and evidence. Unfortunately I was talking to 'the good apple in the barrel' - the one individual in the place who acknowledged many of my criticisms, both of the wack conjecture and of the staff.
You should delete comments that don't allow for replies. It's up to you, but intellectual cowardice like that should have no place on this channel in my opinion.
@@dystopiaeatsmoney veganism isn't manipulation. The closest they get is presenting unpleasant facts. And I already know that my burger is made of animal and it probably had a shitty life.
skeptic moderate. I’m vegan and find the ridiculous reasons people have against veganism interesting. I didn’t mean to put anybody on the defensive, just thought this channel might have something interesting to say about it.
That's an extremely kind message. Thank you. I take breaks during recording so my voice isn't ever compromised - though I'll share with you that, being an inveterate gabbler, restricting myself is still quite a challenge! ;8)
I empathise with you. I've seen a few therapists in my time, mostly because courses required it, and half were hopeless - I ditched them and looked for others, but it was an eye-opener.
'I fail to see how "science doesn't have all the answers" is a strawman.' -I'm giving the audience the credit to realise that the strawman is in the way the statement's presented, as if scientists/science proponents had claimed it was. I took it to be obvious that it wasn't a strawman as a lone-standing statement itself.
That video was refreshingly clear and unabashed in its advocacy of rational thought. Watching it made me feel good. Then I realised why I felt good: it's because such clarity and rationality are so very rare. Realising that made me feel bad again. :(
Sadly, I've heard too many of these cases to be surprised - I know of someone whose spine problems were put down to 'being depressed at growing old and losing their looks'. Outrageous. But I'm also not surprised by the refusal of your father's psychologist to apologise. In the course I talk about in the video, there was an explicit motto - 'never explain; never apologise'. I argued strongly that appropriate apologies were essential in a genuine relationship.
Attaching labels to metaphysical things may appear harmless, but when labels are indiscriminately attached to people, that is not only unfair but also dangerous. I was diagnosed as "schizoid", simply for being quiet and unobtrusive. Labels accompany one for life, they enable discrimination and prejudice against innocent and sane-minded people. I am unemployable, not because I am incompetent, but simply because of the stigma of being labelled mentally defective.
ugh. it sucks to hear another of those stories. i was accused of depression for having a death kink, and borderline for disobeying my mother. reaaallly bad memories attached to that. :(
@spiro i cant help but agree. i too got labelled "scizoid" after being forced to explain a sarcastic joke that wooshed over everyone's heads. generally speaking, just about any quirky behavior can be labelled as one of many number of bullshit mental illnesses that are popular these days
@@cerberaodollam I was called a psycho for 2 years by my teacher for telling her that I don't believe in God, even though I never made any claims about anything.
' What I can guarantee you is that it works on the patients of my doctor ' -Oh? Have you published a peer-reviewed study to support that personal guarantee? What tests did you carry out to rule out the placebo effect?
'"puzzling over and figuring out" - That's what we're all doing. What benefit do you see in therapy as opposed to exploring with trusted friends/family?' -I disagree - many of us are stuck, unable to figure out our predicament, for all kinds of reasons. It's brilliant if you can talk things through with friends/family. My brother QualiaSoup is my default 'therapist'. For situations where talking to friends/family is impossible/undesirable, therapy's an option.
I absolutely love Theramin's videos. They were the first things I watched when I was doubting my religion. I'm so thankful for these videos, as well as the person who recommended them to me.
All the great experimenters, from Galileo Galilei to Albert Einstein, once gave the same answer to the questions they asked themselves: "I don’t know." Hence the reason for the experimentation.
'Would you care to comment on the apparent running theme in this - gender?' -Baffled. It's not a running theme for me. In what way is it a running theme for you?
Man I love your videos. I feel mentally refreshed after watching one of them. I just wish it would last longer than 15 min though. I need to find a way to constantly remember the great ideas brought up in your videos.
The second you started talking about Chantele Lavigne being "cooked to death" I knew Candance Newmaker was gonna be talked about. I am actually so sorry for that poor girl, I can't imagine how bad she must have felt in her last moments and I get so sad everytime I hear about her. She was trapped in that blanket, under those adults for 90 minutes. 90 fucking minutes... 🙁
As a New Zealander, I felt a little insulted too, as kiwi is not only the national bird and incredibly well adapted to its ecological niche, but also the nickname for a New Zealander. However, as a metaphorical analogy it was apt.
@@Longtack55 As An Aussie I' not sure how I feel about that... Yeah, they're also flightless and all that, but most of the head-in-the-clouds hippy "crystal healers" I've heard waxing on about "vibrations" won't kick the living shit outta ya for existing... I've found it tends to be the "chickens" with "absolute scientific truths too complex for you to comprehend" that get nasty when cornered. ...hmmm, actually that bit works well for the analogy, chooks can be really nasty little pea-brained buggas. ANZACs! Oppose Kiwi oppression! We need another bird to stand in for our completely unscientific hippy "Dr Feel Good"s...something flightless, ditzy and probably endangered. "The kakapo is a bird out of time. If you look one in its large, round, greeny-brown face, it has a look of serenely innocent incomprehension that makes you want to hug it and tell it that everything will be all right, though you know that it probably will not be." ~Douglas Adams
@@Longtack55 No Furry Quokkas Mate! BTW, I don't know if you're ancient enough to appreciate this but check this out. I'm on the piss ATM and feel like sharing... th-cam.com/video/i5EZaO1HPF4/w-d-xo.html
The Rosenhan paper is such an exposé of what we can fall into, I feel like it could benefit psychiatric circles to have it listed as compulsive reading - and revisited often. Running tests every few years is a great idea. I'm not aware of any modern repeats of the experiment, but it would be fascinating to see if any shift has occurred since then.
Well I'm hearing some personal innuendo - 'could you have been damaged' - and I'm hearing some attempts at shifting the burden of proof. What I'm not hearing is evidence. I've said very clearly, gimme the evidence and I'll be all ears. But rather than take up that honest open invitation to show me this evidence that you're suggesting is being dismissed, you instead answer with innuendo and burden-shifting. I'm not distracted by it. Again, I ask for your evidence.
so wonderful to see another TheraminTrees production is available. like a restaurant at which the chef puts his heart and soul into every dish, i enjoy returning to your channel from time to time, and when i see a new dish on the menu, i order without hesitation.
I really hope you find a way through this period with your family. I know my own family has come through a lot of similarly disconnecting influences over the years to find the closeness we now have, which keeps me hopeful and optimistic. We can only go on with the perpetual global conversation about these issues, and hope that sometimes, something gets through. All the best!
I have been applying your discussions of religion quite easily to cults, modern secular mindsets of individuals, and even adding these concepts into my stories to deepen character motivations and realism of character flaws.
This channel has the most thoughtful, interesting, educational content. I can relate to the misdiagnosis part. My husband's foot wound was constantly attributed to diabetes morphed into him self harming (and he is a doubled medical physician one boarded specialty is physical medicine and rehabilitation) three wound centers later, he finally had surgery and proper wound care. The whole in his foot up to and including bone, was caused by a spinal cord tumor causing nerve injuries to his feet. It was shocking that even a well educated doctor who was a patient was treated this way. Can you imagine how people with less education in medicine and less confidence feel if put in this situation?
Thanks. During the application process, I asked several pointed questions about their attitudes to criticism, to dogmatic interpretation, etc. They were at pains to present themselves as very open and respectful. In practice, very different attitudes were revealed.
18:30 There’s actually a whole ARG based around this incident called PETSCOP. It’s interesting to see how time brings with it more ways to criticize and mock bad ideas, even if they’re in a roundabout sort of way
Thanks. You're right - there was a version of the track in a former video of mine, where I'm playing my old Yamaha multitrack. This is an updated orchestral version produced in Logic Studio.
I've been very confused in the last few weeks; almost as if I've come out of a dream, life just doesn't make sense anymore. I grew up in a Pentecostal household and through my childhood never totally agreed with things that were being preached. While I'd like to believe there's an overseer, afterlife, or spirit, I also believe it's completely arrogant for us as minuscule as we are, to both confirm or deny the true nature of the Universe we find ourselves in. As I just recently hit 20, I'm having a bit of a quarter-life crisis; fearing death, age, the bounds of the universe, how little we understand, and how easy it is to find ourselves at the grips of psychosis. These videos are GREAT even if I do find myself nervous to watch them... That just means I need to dig deeper, maybe these will help me form an opinion around what kind of reality we exist in compared to the reality I ***want*** to exist in... I don't stop just here though like said here, it's important to sift through the information and find the true ground. I appreciate the calm demeanor and voice (sucks it's kind of a bad thing for you though!). While I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking for, I know I don't want to be afraid anymore and this channel definitely helps with that at times.
I hear you - I’m similarly investigating agnosticism and the history of things like : blood magic and magical thinking, the history of human , infant, and first born sacrifice. Myths, legends, and watching how Christian’s poorly treat human beings and the lack of any advancement of the human race or earth.
"While I'd like to believe there's an overseer, afterlife, or spirit, I also believe it's completely arrogant for us as minuscule as we are, to both confirm or deny the true nature of the Universe we find ourselves in" I don't really understand this, do you mind elaborating?
The kind of mindset you have despite growing up in a Pentacostal household is admirable. I wish you luck in figuring these things out and living your life the best way you can.
@@ImGadz I think he's saying that humanity and Earth are such a miniscule, insignificant part of the universe that there's no way we can know anything for sure about the nature of the entire universe. And he's saying it would be arrogant of us to assume we can. Does that make sense? Please correct me if I'm wrong.
@@Orangekid65 @Katelyn Lowe sheesh I forgot I replied to this, uh yea I guess that would make sense, thanks for sharing your thoughts btw. disclaimer: semi long post ahead Tho I'll be honest, I never really fully got the whole "we're so insignificant, the universe is so vast, and we're so insignificant, so believing God cares about what we do is laughable" which isn't the same argument the OP was making, but they're in a similar category. What I don't get with this point is, is it not the fact that humanity is aware of it's insignificance saying something? I mean if you assume that A Creator exists, I feel like the fact that humanity is aware of the possibility of The Creator to some extent, about the scale of the universe, about different life forms and the potential for alien life, about the complexities and intricacies of life itself, would point to me that Humans aren't so insignificant, and would for me point to the fact that assuming The Creator did exist, The Creator would most likely care about what humans do. While not a perfect example I think it would be similar to if we found ourselves in a huge mansion, I'm talking huge, like there's a 100 floors with 100 rooms each. And you find yourself in a room, and you look at the vastness of the mansion, and you claim that since it's so large it must be that the owner doesn't care about you or the room, and that they wouldn't mind if you made a mess in / neglected your own room, that wouldn't be all to accurate would it? Especially when you're aware of the other rooms, of the scale of the house, and of the possibility of the owner caring. But OK I digress, that is a bit off-topic, since the main point wasn't "Why would God care since we're insignificant" but rather "We can't claim any knowledge since we're so insignificant" And I dunno, I mean who or what determines significance? Physical Scale? I mean if we found ourselves in a world where only the earth exists, I feel like people would still claim "The Earth is so large and there are so many people that it is arrogant to claim that we know anything", Perhaps if there was only a village that existed or one person, then posing that same question wouldn't make sense, but "the world has to be small in order for us to make any claims" just doesn't sound right, I can elaborate but I think we can agree on it. Perhaps because The Bible / general organized religion implies that Earth is God's main creation? And here we would be getting in a scriptural debate + my knowledge of the bible isn't all too up to par, but first of all we're talking about A Creator vs No Creator not about a specific religion, and secondly, I don't know if there's anything in The Bible that unequivocally claims that Earth is the only place where God made things happen, maybe alien civilizations exist and God sent Messengers to their planet as well, I don't see why that wouldn't be the case, and plus you have to consider the fact that religious texts on Earth was made for Humans on Earth, so it would make sense as to why it would primarily talk about earth and humans on earth rather then aliens. Perhaps because Jesus was sent on earth and he's supposedly the savior, but maybe other worlds don't need a savior? Who knows what I'm saying is I'm not sure, but I don't think it's implied in the religious texts that God only focused on earth, so saying that because the universe is so vast religion can't be true seems like not a very good argument. But I digress once again, we're getting into a religion-specific debate whilst I'm mainly talking about the philosophical standing with "A Creator vs No Creator" Also re-reading the original post, "to both confirm or deny the true nature of the Universe", I think I do agree with this to a certain extent but at the same time I don't think believing in a Creator is "confirming or denying the true nature of the universe", and I find that proposition rather absurd, ultimately we don't know and until we die we won't know, maybe not even then, but I still think the OP is making two mistakes in their assessment: 1). they're conflating "beliefs" with "100% claims", or in other words they're saying that believing in something is the same as 'confirming or denying' something. if I believed my theoretical friend named John was a good person, that wouldn't mean I'm claiming that I looked into every single action that he ever committed in his life, and every person that ever existed action, and compared the two, and based on that, I concluded that he was a good person. But that still doesn't mean that it's valid to assume my belief about him being a good person is arrogant or untrue, especially since it seems to be based on something, e.g my personal experience with John. You don't have to comprehend something fully to have a belief regarding it, and that belief isn't invalid because of that fact, perhaps if someone had more knowledge, their belief would hold more weight, but even then I can guarantee they don't know everything regarding that subject they have a belief about, but I wouldn't say either of those beliefs are arrogant, as long as you're not claiming that you hold the ultimate truth and that you know everything. 2.). they're assuming the atheistic position to be the default position, which, well might make sense in context of organized religions, but not very much so in the context of "Creator vs No Creator". They did say "confirm or deny" so props to them, they are being fair in that regard. But I still did notice a underlining suggestion of "It is arrogant to claim that we know if a Creator exists or not, therefore live your life as if no Creator exists" We don't know if a Creator exists or not, but why should we assume that No Creator exists? Why is that the seemingly the default position? [and let me be clear here, with this argument I'm not advocating for a specific religion, if someone is pushing a religion the burden of proof does fall on them I believe, depending on the context tho, but I'm talking about the assumption that A Creator exists vs No Creator exists] And I'm aware that even if you assume that A Creator exists, the question of His Attributes still do come into question, but that's a different point entirely, some people don't even consider the first step of "Does A Creator even exist?" Well that's about it for what I have to say, keep in mind btw these are just my two cents and not really any super fully thought out argument. Thanks for reading if you did read this in full. Peace out, and have a great day.
Your videos are amazing. I just found out about you through the Richard Dawkins foundation for reason and science. I really enjoy how you go into depth about your presentations and do a great job of illustrating your point. I am now a fan.
Is that considered a Tu Quoque attack even if the accusations of hypocrisy is false? Or is it a more general abusive ad hominem, since it is a personal attack with no argumentative merit? Or a red herring special case, since it is an irrelevant statement that's meant to move the discussion into more combative arena? Is there a name for a personal attack that's a straight up lie?
I'm really appreciating these videos right now. I've moved to a town full of hippies and fundamentalists - psuedoscience and toxic religion wherever I look. I'm feeling the need for something like a t-shirt that says "pseudoscience is abuse".
Yes, I found Candace's story extremely distressing - and infuriating. Which is why I think it's so important to get stories like these publicised - if they don't get pseudoscientists to think, then at least they might inspire much more caution in parents about trusting 'authorities in psychological matters'. I do also place a big question mark over parents' readiness to allow children to be subjected to these practices - they have huge responsibility here.
Sorry to hear about your throat and hope it got/is better. Your voice on the videos is soothing and makes it easier to listen to. Thank you for your content as much as your presentation.
Fantastic video, I really liked how you stood up to the abuses and illegal and unethical behavior of the supervisors and administrators at the school. You definitely were fighting to make things better!
@TheraminTrees I'm in college studying Child Psychology...I eventually want to be a LPC. I'm fascinated by your videos..the psychological ones really bring home what my instructor is trying to say many times. thank you so very much for your work! I live for new videos from your channel!
Thanks you for your very kind message. I'd love to have the time to upload a lot more than I do. Though I should also be open about my abiding, conflicting hope of becoming redundant - of a world where reason is muscular enough to become the predominant default, and deal firmly and swiftly with abuse-facilitating unreason.
You hit the nail directly on the head. I'm glad I've found your channel, as you have given voice to every idea that's been tumbling around inside my head. I just wish more people could question their own beliefs, and let go of the ones that don't hold up to scrutiny, because the world we are living in is dominated by so many bad ideas
Theramintrees your videos are wonderful. So much insightful information and never too opinionated. I admire how your mind works. Your videos have opened my already open mind up to new thought mechanisms and styles of thinking and has no doubt made me a better person in doing so. Thank you
I would love to see Theramin Trees apply his powerful reasoning skills towards something other than religion, like maybe The Venus Project and The Zeitgiest Movement. I cant figure out if TVP is pseudoscience or if Jacque Fresco is really a genius who has put together something very special. I really want to know what you think about those two groups. Fair warning needs at least 12 hours of research to really get a handle on all the things. (Less time than the bible apparently stole from you). Recommended viewing order of relevant ideas. 1 "Future by Design" tvp 2 "Zeitgiest Addendum" tvp and tzm 3. "Zeitgiest Moving Forward" tzm 4. Alfie Kohn the case against competition on youtube 5. TVP TZM sites for FAQs on specific questions. Then explore "culture in decline" on youtube. If you get tired of the religion thing which for you is old hat. Many people are becoming interested in these new ideas and you do quality work regardless of you opinions. Side bar--Weird how every human on the planet feels he/she is right most of the time regardless of what those beliefs are we feel justified in them.
"Religion is a system of psychological group manipulation designed with the intent of limiting people’s understanding of reality and ability to think critically. The aim if this goal is to have a neatly organized society of factions that are unable to work together with one another. This safeguards the ruling class from any uprising because there results a situation where there is no single group large or powerful enough to challenge their rule, let alone identify it." ~Myself
CESSKAR It seems as though your statement would be greatly aided by at least a couple more words. I understand what a memetic infection is. Are you saying that I'm calling religion a memetic infection? Are you accusing my of trying to start a memetic infection. Your counter-argument of "Ludicrous" isn't a terribly challenging argument, either. In fact, I've decided that my response to that counter argument shall be the following: Nuh uh!
Geoff Stockton Alright, let's discuss. From your definition I understand the "dawkins' memetic infection" would be the cause of religion. That's what I meant. And that is what I find ludicrous. Also your definition but I'll try to keep rational so forget I said that. So, your definition. The old conspiracy of the alpha male and the shaman "let's pretend some magical stupidity so they work and we have power". But you go further: _The aim if this goal is to have a neatly organized society of factions that are unable to work together with one another._ I must ask how is religion involved in the creation of different "factions that are unable to work together". I think you are trying to tie marxism here but anyway I think I have another idea; what about herd structure, shared with all the primates, where there is an alpha male and the rest are vassals or complacents. Along with the start of civilizations (circa 6000 BC). Besides I must say religion has arguably the contrary purpose you give it; bind people together. People are not equal, that much is evident, and out of the family it is very difficult for people to trust others (discrimination is innate, logically) so actually religions give social identity; making differents equal.
vlad saioc Discrimination is a human trait. In the history of evolution, especially after sexual reproduction. Sorry, religion is not the "cause of all evil".
Theremin, definitely looking forward to seeing the "boiling frog" video. In the mean time I'll go through your back catalog of videos I haven't watched yet. Thanks for making these. They are informative works of art to me. With your superb animation style, great voice and wonderful music.
i appreciate the crowbar metaphor of skepticism because it outlines how there must be room for thought between what we see and what we do, though in this case you applied it specifically to people who have already made up their mind. in your use of it, you describe skepticism's wedge as allowing for 'more spontaneity', but i would argue that it can also be used to describe how gullibility and impulsivity should be fought. an important part of media literacy (and immunity to pseudoscience) is examining the context of a given idea, statement, or path of action; something manipulators often try to skip over or restrict.
This has been my experience with just about every psychology or sociology course I've ever taken. I challenged the ideas in the beginning, but ultimately I didn't have the fortitude to do so continuously throughout the year. Props for your resolve.
You are so articulate in how you present your argument, I always envy you knowledge. Thanks for this video, I know how time consuming it is to collect all those information and find a way to encapsulate all those information in a 20 minutes clip while also editing and designing the appropriate graphics for them.
Hey BC! :8) And thanks for the postcard from Prague - indeed a fabulous city, as one of my sisters has said. It was good to hear from you. Yes, the course was the reason I had to drop our musical jams - it came to consume all my time, which no other course has done. But yes - it gave me plenty to think about. As I said in the video, it had it's plusses too. But they were nowhere near enough. Hope you're both having a great 2013 xxx
I wish i had your clarity of mind to respond to such manipulative psychologists on the spot, ive had such a horrible experience In day hospitalisation for depression, and in therapy in general. This kind of manipulation immediately regresses me and triggers a freezing flashback to my childhood making me unable to think coherently. pathologizing every behaviour, ignoring real problems and criticisms, always behaving like something must be either wrong with you as person or at the very least your thinking, even when describing objective reality. Its literally abuse in the form of gaslighting and they behave as if their trying to help when all they do is look for narcissistic affirmation of their own beliefs
Kudos. There’s so many comments to go through, I’ll add this, without knowing if it has been covered. I’ve found that another source of thinking that causes good people to do bad things is dogmatic ideologies based on striving towards towards political goals (which may entail utopian futures, or the preservation of traditions). Sometimes they wear pseudo scientific garb,sometimes mes they don’t not. The people under the influence of this often have the same dualistic thinking that tend to dehumanize those who don’t partake in them.
Wonderful new video. I absolutely love your and QualiaSoup's series. Wish they could be posted more often, or even if you gents did a e-course on how to think critically. I truly enjoy hearing about your life stories and value that while you have a throat condition, you still make great videos for us to watch. Truly I thank and applaud you sir.
Hey Joe! So lovely to see your name come up. How the devil are you? Still making beautiful music? The selfish part of me always hopes you will upload again. But whatever you're up to these days, I hope all's well with you my friend.
'Where are your cliparts of people from?'
-The graphics are my all own original illustrations.
I know this is unrelated to this comment you made 7 years ago but could you do a video about or opinion on “you can choose your beliefs” it’s really annoying when someone says that in a conversation.
@@SparseB They can indeed do that bit it doesn't change all the other manipulative things that religions do so why chose others?
If right wingers and left wingers are so different. Why can’t we just separate before we do irreparable damage to each other? At least we’ll have left on better terms than if the fighting never stopped. You’re an atheist for example, but my sense of self stems from God and it’s not going to change or go away because of that. I tried to hear what atheists had to say, and contrary to what you might expect having such an integral part of myself challenged isn’t going well. I don’t want to change myself, I love myself. I’m willing to bet that atheists feel the same way. Trying to change what is core to someone else’s human psyche will leave it split in two. Why should we continue to threaten each other if we’d be happier apart? At least for now. I tried to “become an atheist” or at least challenge my views by watching atheistic content. And I fell further away from what made me, me. What I was originally. The same may not be true for you.
@@marcusjohnson3766 you can carry on believing in God but to separate people based on their beliefs is wrong. It also prevents many theists from becoming atheists and from what I have read that transition is often one of the most enlightening experiences of one's life.
@@arya6085 You don’t understand me. I don’t want to separate people. I was trying to learn more about myself through asking that question. But you’re right it’s never okay to separate people so thanks I guess. No one can fix me and I’ve never belonged. I felt death ☠️ before and it sickens me. I’m destined for pain and death but want to avoid it. All I think I do is hurt people so please don’t presuppose that I want to do that to you you’ll just make me worse.
I can't stop laughing at your example of "I'm sure if I came around and slapped you round the face , we could have a fascinating discussion of all the people I remind you of". Your sense of humor is amazing 😂
Cheers Elayna. It was a surreal meeting.
@@TheraminTrees can you make a video about all the conspiracy theories around Corona Virus?
@@EJ-jx9te how about the conspiring theory of deez
Me too 🤣
@@yobarbsteegins4909 what is "the conspiracy theory of deez"?
My dad proudly said once that "'I don't know' is never an acceptable answer."
He's the kind of guy who believes freedom of religion only applies to him.
He that is wise in his own eyes is worse than a
fool
Solomon
Facepalming is not enough for this statement.
Theists tend to hate "I don't know" because they know it's an acceptable and honest answer. They would rather presuppose a god cuz they like the feeling. Just look at young earth creationists who actively deny favts, simply because they disprove their god creation myth.
The opposite of that is more frequently true in the big questions. It’s a brave and honest answer (although it shouldn’t have to be brave), and then you know you’re talking to an authentic person. Less often so when the question is ‘who ate all the chocolate biscuits?’
Imo, "I don't know *yet*" is a much better answer than "I don't know."
'You can not say that something is wrong without experience on the field.'
-You don't have to say something is 'wrong' - it's the burden of the proponent to support their claim, not the sceptic to show it's 'wrong'. The sceptic merely asks for evidence - without which, the claim is not supported.
to be fair you are believing in the false memory claim without proof. i personally believe in their claims, especially since there are multiple people claiming memory. and there would hypothetically be interests by the cult in discrediting the witnesses/victims. also DID (dissociative identity disorder) is a thing, where the mind splits in reaction to traumatic events. the alters/identity fragments may have self conceptions outside of what is physically true to cope with their trauma.
but then again, while i have many personal accounts that cover this theory, i am not 100% on it, just skeptic and wanting to share my skepticism with you.
@@mivical personal accounts are finicky. We can't actually experience them ourselves to notice possible inconsistencies and we're not sure how much of the shared personal accounts are influenced by suggestion, expectations of events, or any other external influence which could have affected all of them. In a scientific environment all the variables should be controlled to minimize that but in the areas of pseudoscience he touches on in this video, manipulation of events to get a certain outcome is common even if unwitting.
You don't need to get punched in the nose to know it hurts.
@@Gwestytears But you don't know if it hurts do you? You only believe that it does. Understand the difference?
@@sandollor I do know that it does
I take offense at the concept that chickens are lazy. My chickens are very active. I even have a chicken that jumps 15 feet directly up into the barn rafters to go to sleep at night. Sure, she could sleep near ground level in the coop with the other chickens... but she's hardcore, and wants an eagle eye view of the world around her. She is the eagle eyed chicken.
+xxPsychorabbitxx Chickens are awesome.
Just checking, you're doing this sarcastically, right?
I love your love, for your 🐔's!!
Especially, "EEC" (eagle-eyed 🐔) She's got the eye of the 🐯!!
😁
i hate chickens
My friend has a neighbor with chickens and a few of them got into his yard, we had to spend over an hour trying to herd them back where they were supposed to be, I wouldn't call them lazy after that experience.
'BTW, by that definition, "kiwis" include "agnostic atheists".'
-Nope. 'Kiwis' as defined in this video are positive claims of actual processes/phenomena. That can by no stretch be applied to agnostic atheists, who make no positive claim of any processes/phenomena - they merely disbelieve positive claims made by theists. Atheists aren't the ones defining gods - they're the ones responding to definitions offered to them by theists.
So, this does bring a question to my mind. Have you ever made or thought about making a video on agnostic atheists? I would adore your input
@@alexbeauchamp8627 he made with his brother QualiaSoup. You can find it at QualiaSoup's channel (nowadays it's just archive, since he doesn't make videos anymore but instead helps TheramingTrees).
Haha, whoever made that absurd claim does not understand what Agnosticism or Atheism are.
Essentially as honest atheists, we should admit a degree of uncertainty as to whether there are definitely no gods or paranormal forces in existence. Highly unlikely but not altogether impossible, to argue certainly leads to burden. I think that an atheist relates to theism (& deism) similarly to how an asexual person might relate to the act of sex... stay with me! ... We just aren't into it (some of might have tried it on the past), don't really wanna talk about it, don't want to hear the neighbors doing it on Sunday morning, don't wanna hear details about how you/ whoever does it, don't wanna get invited to group experiences... It's just a thing that's not on our radar.
It's pointless debating most theists as faith is not receptive of unsuitable fact.
I used to believe in crystal healing a bit, then later realized that it was just me deciding to be comforted by these objects, whether it be because of their appearance, texture, or malleability. Beauty has a pretty big impact on your life outlook if you allow yourself to be comforted by the objects you've delegated to comfort you.
Same. I just like pretty rocks.
Could that not be said about a man's comfort in the presence of beautiful women?
@@SpeakerWiggin49 It could, but I don't think it's a great idea to treat women like objects such as rocks
Oh yeah, the perfect mix of body care and jewelry
every time I read a comment like this I have my faith in humanity restored just a little. Far too many people refuse to question their beliefs, instead they defend them beyond reason.
"For good people to do evil things takes dogma."
I prefer that, since it includes so much.
"all you have to do to get good people to do evil things is convince them it is for the greater good."
Vault Door There're no perfect people, but I'd say most people are generally good.
@Vault Door "That is not what we observe" who are "we" and please tell me where you see "Most people are lying..." If you are going to expect others to justify their positions then you should do the same.
@Vault Door Have you looked out of the window recently? Is the whole world around you in chaos? When I look out of my window I see a reasonable society that is trying to generally move along, there are as many different pulls as there are people but they are not at each others throats. There is even the argument that many lies are told in an effort to "support" others as in the "no that looks great on you". Societies are working examples of people getting on, perfectly no, but all accepting that progress is made together. To get a better and pleasanter outlook try reading Steven Pinker's "The better angles of our Nature" as he discusses the steady reduction of violence in human society over time. He gives an overview in a TED talk
@Vault Door You should watch Jordan Peterson sometimes.
No I prefer clever people with things to say.
I can't express in a comment how your videos have helped me. You give clear and eloquent language to thoughts that have been nebulous in my mind for years. Your work is touching, brilliant, helpful, and kind. Thank you!
And thank you - I appreciate that valuable feedback on the work.
help him help you by going to his Patreon account (I'm not paid for this ad)
@@johndelong5574 to scared to say what you want to say, so you hide behind cryptic slogans. It's clear where you're coming from. Do us a favor, stay hidden behind the couch and don't touch the keyboard. For even cowards transform themselves into idiots after several drinks.
He that is of the truth heareth my voice
Jesus
@@johndelong5574 Jesus? Is that you?
'it really turns into a lot of "all the teachers are out to get me!"'
-Some students did feel that some teachers were 'out to get them'. And in a couple of cases, I think they were right: there was evidence of some focussed bullying, which as a matter of interest has, in the last few weeks, put the institute in serious trouble. But nope, personally I don't think the staff I had trouble with were 'out to get me'. I think they were simply inept, negligent and corrupted by pseudoscience.
I'm no big therapy-pusher - I've never suggested to anyone in my personal life that they take themselves to therapy. And one of the arguments I had at the centre depicted in this video was that they were trying to get students to keep their clients in therapy - 'Fight to keep them!' we were told. I found this outrageous. Therapy is as useful as the client finds it - no more. It's the client who determines the benefit - and who have absolute autonomy to leave when they feel ready.
Religion is pretty easy to understand once you realize that it is a perfect reflection of basic human needs. It isn't really about addressing the truth, it's about addressing our own wants.
For example, there is a basic human NEED to be able to explain everything. This NEED causes people to accept false conclusions (how we got here, what our purpose is, what happens after we die, etc). On the other hand, a DESIRE to be able to explain everything is a great benefit to us, as it is the driving force behind scientific development and understanding.
It's a fine line between a need and a desire. One way to fill the gap is saying 'I don't know', the other way is to use religion.
Also, the need to feel loved, the need to have an authority figure, the need for repetition and ritual, the need for social acceptance, the fear of death, the fear of punishment. The list really does go on...
Don't forget the need for a greater purpose
Which only begs the question,Why do people need all the things that religion offers in the first place?Unless we were CREATED that way.
@@johndelong5574 I highly doubt that. It's perfectly sensible that Religion was created in response to our needs and desires.
@@johndelong5574 What if people created religion to give us those wants?
'As a Reiki practitioner i just cant see how you can call it a pseudo science'
-Then could you explain what the word 'Reiki' means - and give an account of the evidence for it?
Amazing... I particularly liked the personal story about how even someone out to be skeptical and rational by pursuing an education in psychology can find themselves up to their eyeballs in pseudoscience.
You may never see this but you would not BELIEVE the psychological B.S. In a lot of palliative care clinics.
Rational skeptics do not pursue education in psychology. Power-hungry pseudomystics do.
@@anitahyche1 I think the closest thing I have to a phobia is ending up in a mental ward. Once people believe you to be insane, there is no convincing them otherwise. It's a sentence that can end up far worse than prison, with no end in sight and often worse treatment, including being drugged, restricted and sensorily deprived.
@@LamiaDomina idk, tempted to pursue it simply to see with my own eyes how much is bs and how much is actually useful
@@adrianroed2178 then be careful. But stand for the Constitution for everyone
People that call you closed minded in an argument only prove to not understand what being open minded is.
Except... you know... if you're being closed minded? Refusing to take in account the valid proof that they're giving you because it goes against what you believe?
People wrongly accusing other people of being closed minded does not mean closed mindedness does not exist
"...some true believers waking up from their illusions only to discover they don't have skills in any other trade leading them to continue in a profession they privately reject" This explains my own situation so exactly.
I'm familiar with the Newmaker tragedy from another video I watched many years ago - and wasn't entirely surprised to see it appear here. But, to this day, it still makes my blood run cold. It's genuinely hard to believe that something so corrupt, disturbing, and dark could happen, perpetrated by real people against a real victim. Incredibly saddening and troubling.
'Is the story about the developmental psychology course true or fictional?'
-Depressingly true. It wasn't purely a developmental psychology course - that's just one of the range of seminars that we had on the course. Two of us from my class ended up leaving. Many students said complaining was futile, or wanted to just keep their heads down and just get through it. But as I said to heads, if I don't tell you the problems the responsibility's mine; if you don't listen the responsibility's yours.
If I had Theramin as my therapist I’d be on some godly levels of understanding.
tamsinthai. It appears your account isn't set up for replies. Be great if the world was as simple as your comment suggests. Unfortunately, the world is more complex, subtle and unexpected and cursory glances at syllabuses don't necessarily reveal anything about the 'batshit craziness' of an institute's employees. In my particular case, I had much more than a cursory glance at a syllabus which promised - but didn't deliver - a strong focus on scientific literature. During the application process I also put some serious questions to my interviewer about the institute's stance on research and evidence. Unfortunately I was talking to 'the good apple in the barrel' - the one individual in the place who acknowledged many of my criticisms, both of the wack conjecture and of the staff.
TheraminTrees Please do something on veganism.
Jeremy Colwell What's wrong with veganism? What does it have to do with the psychology of manipulation?
You should delete comments that don't allow for replies. It's up to you, but intellectual cowardice like that should have no place on this channel in my opinion.
@@dystopiaeatsmoney veganism isn't manipulation. The closest they get is presenting unpleasant facts. And I already know that my burger is made of animal and it probably had a shitty life.
skeptic moderate. I’m vegan and find the ridiculous reasons people have against veganism interesting. I didn’t mean to put anybody on the defensive, just thought this channel might have something interesting to say about it.
You're a bloody genius, dude. Your videos are the best videos on youtube (next to lectures by Hitchens, of course).
John Doe Cheers - glad you enjoyed them. Hitchens had a beautiful brain didn't he - a great loss, but a treasure trove left behind.
That's an extremely kind message. Thank you. I take breaks during recording so my voice isn't ever compromised - though I'll share with you that, being an inveterate gabbler, restricting myself is still quite a challenge! ;8)
I empathise with you. I've seen a few therapists in my time, mostly because courses required it, and half were hopeless - I ditched them and looked for others, but it was an eye-opener.
I feel like murdering something after reading that session transcript.
Great vid, man. Thanks!
'I fail to see how "science doesn't have all the answers" is a strawman.'
-I'm giving the audience the credit to realise that the strawman is in the way the statement's presented, as if scientists/science proponents had claimed it was. I took it to be obvious that it wasn't a strawman as a lone-standing statement itself.
That video was refreshingly clear and unabashed in its advocacy of rational thought. Watching it made me feel good. Then I realised why I felt good: it's because such clarity and rationality are so very rare. Realising that made me feel bad again. :(
Sadly, I've heard too many of these cases to be surprised - I know of someone whose spine problems were put down to 'being depressed at growing old and losing their looks'. Outrageous. But I'm also not surprised by the refusal of your father's psychologist to apologise. In the course I talk about in the video, there was an explicit motto - 'never explain; never apologise'. I argued strongly that appropriate apologies were essential in a genuine relationship.
Attaching labels to metaphysical things may appear harmless, but when labels are indiscriminately attached to people, that is not only unfair but also dangerous. I was diagnosed as "schizoid", simply for being quiet and unobtrusive. Labels accompany one for life, they enable discrimination and prejudice against innocent and sane-minded people. I am unemployable, not because I am incompetent, but simply because of the stigma of being labelled mentally defective.
ugh. it sucks to hear another of those stories. i was accused of depression for having a death kink, and borderline for disobeying my mother. reaaallly bad memories attached to that. :(
@spiro agreed. Sadly the police is on their side
@spiro i cant help but agree. i too got labelled "scizoid" after being forced to explain a sarcastic joke that wooshed over everyone's heads. generally speaking, just about any quirky behavior can be labelled as one of many number of bullshit mental illnesses that are popular these days
@@cerberaodollam
I was called a psycho for 2 years by my teacher for telling her that I don't believe in God, even though I never made any claims about anything.
A diagnosis of schizoid wouldn’t make you unemployable. There’s more to this story.
' What I can guarantee you is that it works on the patients of my doctor '
-Oh? Have you published a peer-reviewed study to support that personal guarantee? What tests did you carry out to rule out the placebo effect?
'I have non belief of "non belief"'
-This is a self-contradictory statement.
Yours and QualiaSoup's videos are consistently the finest on TH-cam. Thank you for making them.
'"puzzling over and figuring out" - That's what we're all doing. What benefit do you see in therapy as opposed to exploring with trusted friends/family?'
-I disagree - many of us are stuck, unable to figure out our predicament, for all kinds of reasons. It's brilliant if you can talk things through with friends/family. My brother QualiaSoup is my default 'therapist'. For situations where talking to friends/family is impossible/undesirable, therapy's an option.
I absolutely love Theramin's videos. They were the first things I watched when I was doubting my religion.
I'm so thankful for these videos, as well as the person who recommended them to me.
All the great experimenters, from Galileo Galilei to Albert Einstein, once gave the same answer to the questions they asked themselves: "I don’t know."
Hence the reason for the experimentation.
'Would you care to comment on the apparent running theme in this - gender?'
-Baffled. It's not a running theme for me. In what way is it a running theme for you?
Man I love your videos. I feel mentally refreshed after watching one of them. I just wish it would last longer than 15 min though. I need to find a way to constantly remember the great ideas brought up in your videos.
8:50 theramintrees is displaying emotions! I repeat THERAMINTREES IS DISPLAYING EMOTIONS!!
The second you started talking about Chantele Lavigne being "cooked to death" I knew Candance Newmaker was gonna be talked about. I am actually so sorry for that poor girl, I can't imagine how bad she must have felt in her last moments and I get so sad everytime I hear about her. She was trapped in that blanket, under those adults for 90 minutes. 90 fucking minutes... 🙁
I wish you hadn't used Kwis as your metaphor for junk science ......junk science isn't endangered. And Kiwis really are fascinating.
As a New Zealander, I felt a little insulted too, as kiwi is not only the national bird and incredibly well adapted to its ecological niche, but also the nickname for a New Zealander.
However, as a metaphorical analogy it was apt.
@@stephenlitten1789 Metoo. feelingshurt# :-D Stephen. Could've used Cassowarys.
@@Longtack55 As An Aussie I' not sure how I feel about that... Yeah, they're also flightless and all that, but most of the head-in-the-clouds hippy "crystal healers" I've heard waxing on about "vibrations" won't kick the living shit outta ya for existing...
I've found it tends to be the "chickens" with "absolute scientific truths too complex for you to comprehend" that get nasty when cornered. ...hmmm, actually that bit works well for the analogy, chooks can be really nasty little pea-brained buggas.
ANZACs! Oppose Kiwi oppression! We need another bird to stand in for our completely unscientific hippy "Dr Feel Good"s...something flightless, ditzy and probably endangered.
"The kakapo is a bird out of time. If you look one in its large, round, greeny-brown face, it has a look of serenely innocent incomprehension that makes you want to hug it and tell it that everything will be all right, though you know that it probably will not be."
~Douglas Adams
@@lordchickenhawk I am surely in agreement with you my Western Island bruh.
@@Longtack55 No Furry Quokkas Mate!
BTW, I don't know if you're ancient enough to appreciate this but check this out. I'm on the piss ATM and feel like sharing...
th-cam.com/video/i5EZaO1HPF4/w-d-xo.html
The Rosenhan paper is such an exposé of what we can fall into, I feel like it could benefit psychiatric circles to have it listed as compulsive reading - and revisited often. Running tests every few years is a great idea. I'm not aware of any modern repeats of the experiment, but it would be fascinating to see if any shift has occurred since then.
Well I'm hearing some personal innuendo - 'could you have been damaged' - and I'm hearing some attempts at shifting the burden of proof. What I'm not hearing is evidence. I've said very clearly, gimme the evidence and I'll be all ears. But rather than take up that honest open invitation to show me this evidence that you're suggesting is being dismissed, you instead answer with innuendo and burden-shifting. I'm not distracted by it. Again, I ask for your evidence.
who are you talking too? a ghost? a ha, evidence!!!
so wonderful to see another TheraminTrees production is available. like a restaurant at which the chef puts his heart and soul into every dish, i enjoy returning to your channel from time to time, and when i see a new dish on the menu, i order without hesitation.
I love how much integrity you have that's why you're my favorite TH-camr
I really hope you find a way through this period with your family. I know my own family has come through a lot of similarly disconnecting influences over the years to find the closeness we now have, which keeps me hopeful and optimistic. We can only go on with the perpetual global conversation about these issues, and hope that sometimes, something gets through. All the best!
I have been applying your discussions of religion quite easily to cults, modern secular mindsets of individuals, and even adding these concepts into my stories to deepen character motivations and realism of character flaws.
This channel has the most thoughtful, interesting, educational content. I can relate to the misdiagnosis part. My husband's foot wound was constantly attributed to diabetes morphed into him self harming (and he is a doubled medical physician one boarded specialty is physical medicine and rehabilitation) three wound centers later, he finally had surgery and proper wound care. The whole in his foot up to and including bone, was caused by a spinal cord tumor causing nerve injuries to his feet. It was shocking that even a well educated doctor who was a patient was treated this way. Can you imagine how people with less education in medicine and less confidence feel if put in this situation?
Thanks. During the application process, I asked several pointed questions about their attitudes to criticism, to dogmatic interpretation, etc. They were at pains to present themselves as very open and respectful. In practice, very different attitudes were revealed.
I love how these videos are 9yo, and they still hold really well
-"The unjustified is just as justified as the justified!"
-"You're such a bucket."
Wonderful! I can't say enough good things about this production. Many thanks to Theramin Trees for his work!
“Far be it from me to throw out the feces-baby with the bath water, but what a load of shit!” may be one of my favorite quotes of all time.
Beautifully communicated as always. Your content and delivery are dead on. Thank you.
18:30 There’s actually a whole ARG based around this incident called PETSCOP. It’s interesting to see how time brings with it more ways to criticize and mock bad ideas, even if they’re in a roundabout sort of way
It's been almost a year but that was superb. I haven't been so captivated by a video in quite a while.
I love these videos. Reminds me that there are sane people somewhere out there, even if I am currently surrounded by insane people.
Thanks. You're right - there was a version of the track in a former video of mine, where I'm playing my old Yamaha multitrack. This is an updated orchestral version produced in Logic Studio.
"When we attempt to run before we walk, we fall over." Love it.
I've been very confused in the last few weeks; almost as if I've come out of a dream, life just doesn't make sense anymore. I grew up in a Pentecostal household and through my childhood never totally agreed with things that were being preached. While I'd like to believe there's an overseer, afterlife, or spirit, I also believe it's completely arrogant for us as minuscule as we are, to both confirm or deny the true nature of the Universe we find ourselves in. As I just recently hit 20, I'm having a bit of a quarter-life crisis; fearing death, age, the bounds of the universe, how little we understand, and how easy it is to find ourselves at the grips of psychosis. These videos are GREAT even if I do find myself nervous to watch them... That just means I need to dig deeper, maybe these will help me form an opinion around what kind of reality we exist in compared to the reality I ***want*** to exist in... I don't stop just here though like said here, it's important to sift through the information and find the true ground. I appreciate the calm demeanor and voice (sucks it's kind of a bad thing for you though!). While I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking for, I know I don't want to be afraid anymore and this channel definitely helps with that at times.
I hear you - I’m similarly investigating agnosticism and the history of things like : blood magic and magical thinking, the history of human , infant, and first born sacrifice. Myths, legends, and watching how Christian’s poorly treat human beings and the lack of any advancement of the human race or earth.
"While I'd like to believe there's an overseer, afterlife, or spirit, I also believe it's completely arrogant for us as minuscule as we are, to both confirm or deny the true nature of the Universe we find ourselves in"
I don't really understand this, do you mind elaborating?
The kind of mindset you have despite growing up in a Pentacostal household is admirable. I wish you luck in figuring these things out and living your life the best way you can.
@@ImGadz I think he's saying that humanity and Earth are such a miniscule, insignificant part of the universe that there's no way we can know anything for sure about the nature of the entire universe. And he's saying it would be arrogant of us to assume we can. Does that make sense?
Please correct me if I'm wrong.
@@Orangekid65 @Katelyn Lowe sheesh I forgot I replied to this, uh yea I guess that would make sense, thanks for sharing your thoughts btw.
disclaimer: semi long post ahead
Tho I'll be honest, I never really fully got the whole "we're so insignificant, the universe is so vast, and we're so insignificant, so believing God cares about what we do is laughable"
which isn't the same argument the OP was making, but they're in a similar category.
What I don't get with this point is, is it not the fact that humanity is aware of it's insignificance saying something?
I mean if you assume that A Creator exists, I feel like the fact that humanity is aware of the possibility of The Creator to some extent, about the scale of the universe, about different life forms and the potential for alien life, about the complexities and intricacies of life itself, would point to me that Humans aren't so insignificant, and would for me point to the fact that assuming The Creator did exist, The Creator would most likely care about what humans do.
While not a perfect example I think it would be similar to if we found ourselves in a huge mansion, I'm talking huge, like there's a 100 floors with 100 rooms each.
And you find yourself in a room, and you look at the vastness of the mansion, and you claim that since it's so large it must be that the owner doesn't care about you or the room, and that they wouldn't mind if you made a mess in / neglected your own room, that wouldn't be all to accurate would it? Especially when you're aware of the other rooms, of the scale of the house, and of the possibility of the owner caring.
But OK I digress, that is a bit off-topic, since the main point wasn't "Why would God care since we're insignificant" but rather "We can't claim any knowledge since we're so insignificant"
And I dunno, I mean who or what determines significance? Physical Scale? I mean if we found ourselves in a world where only the earth exists, I feel like people would still claim "The Earth is so large and there are so many people that it is arrogant to claim that we know anything", Perhaps if there was only a village that existed or one person, then posing that same question wouldn't make sense, but "the world has to be small in order for us to make any claims" just doesn't sound right, I can elaborate but I think we can agree on it.
Perhaps because The Bible / general organized religion implies that Earth is God's main creation? And here we would be getting in a scriptural debate + my knowledge of the bible isn't all too up to par, but first of all we're talking about A Creator vs No Creator not about a specific religion, and secondly, I don't know if there's anything in The Bible that unequivocally claims that Earth is the only place where God made things happen, maybe alien civilizations exist and God sent Messengers to their planet as well, I don't see why that wouldn't be the case, and plus you have to consider the fact that religious texts on Earth was made for Humans on Earth, so it would make sense as to why it would primarily talk about earth and humans on earth rather then aliens.
Perhaps because Jesus was sent on earth and he's supposedly the savior, but maybe other worlds don't need a savior? Who knows what I'm saying is I'm not sure, but I don't think it's implied in the religious texts that God only focused on earth, so saying that because the universe is so vast religion can't be true seems like not a very good argument.
But I digress once again, we're getting into a religion-specific debate whilst I'm mainly talking about the philosophical standing with "A Creator vs No Creator"
Also re-reading the original post, "to both confirm or deny the true nature of the Universe", I think I do agree with this to a certain extent but at the same time I don't think believing in a Creator is "confirming or denying the true nature of the universe", and I find that proposition rather absurd, ultimately we don't know and until we die we won't know, maybe not even then, but I still think the OP is making two mistakes in their assessment:
1). they're conflating "beliefs" with "100% claims", or in other words they're saying that believing in something is the same as 'confirming or denying' something.
if I believed my theoretical friend named John was a good person, that wouldn't mean I'm claiming that I looked into every single action that he ever committed in his life, and every person that ever existed action, and compared the two, and based on that, I concluded that he was a good person.
But that still doesn't mean that it's valid to assume my belief about him being a good person is arrogant or untrue, especially since it seems to be based on something, e.g my personal experience with John.
You don't have to comprehend something fully to have a belief regarding it, and that belief isn't invalid because of that fact, perhaps if someone had more knowledge, their belief would hold more weight, but even then I can guarantee they don't know everything regarding that subject they have a belief about, but I wouldn't say either of those beliefs are arrogant, as long as you're not claiming that you hold the ultimate truth and that you know everything.
2.). they're assuming the atheistic position to be the default position, which, well might make sense in context of organized religions, but not very much so in the context of "Creator vs No Creator".
They did say "confirm or deny" so props to them, they are being fair in that regard.
But I still did notice a underlining suggestion of "It is arrogant to claim that we know if a Creator exists or not, therefore live your life as if no Creator exists"
We don't know if a Creator exists or not, but why should we assume that No Creator exists? Why is that the seemingly the default position?
[and let me be clear here, with this argument I'm not advocating for a specific religion, if someone is pushing a religion the burden of proof does fall on them I believe, depending on the context tho, but I'm talking about the assumption that A Creator exists vs No Creator exists]
And I'm aware that even if you assume that A Creator exists, the question of His Attributes still do come into question, but that's a different point entirely, some people don't even consider the first step of "Does A Creator even exist?"
Well that's about it for what I have to say, keep in mind btw these are just my two cents and not really any super fully thought out argument.
Thanks for reading if you did read this in full.
Peace out, and have a great day.
ClergyProject is now at 600+ members.
etiquettefiend Matt Dilahunty opened my eyes to the project , another guy just fighting the good fight .
Your videos are amazing. I just found out about you through the Richard Dawkins foundation for reason and science. I really enjoy how you go into depth about your presentations and do a great job of illustrating your point. I am now a fan.
Eian Webre Cheers. Very kind of richarddawkins.net to feature the work.
'you started using some of the very tactics you're trying to debunk'
-Baffled. What 'tactics' am I using, that I was trying to debunk?
Is that considered a Tu Quoque attack even if the accusations of hypocrisy is false? Or is it a more general abusive ad hominem, since it is a personal attack with no argumentative merit? Or a red herring special case, since it is an irrelevant statement that's meant to move the discussion into more combative arena?
Is there a name for a personal attack that's a straight up lie?
Dolphin-assisted therapy sounds awesome.
I'm really appreciating these videos right now. I've moved to a town full of hippies and fundamentalists - psuedoscience and toxic religion wherever I look. I'm feeling the need for something like a t-shirt that says "pseudoscience is abuse".
Yes, I found Candace's story extremely distressing - and infuriating. Which is why I think it's so important to get stories like these publicised - if they don't get pseudoscientists to think, then at least they might inspire much more caution in parents about trusting 'authorities in psychological matters'. I do also place a big question mark over parents' readiness to allow children to be subjected to these practices - they have huge responsibility here.
2:19 There are about 950 participants in The Clergy Project as of Jan 2019.
Sorry to hear about your throat and hope it got/is better. Your voice on the videos is soothing and makes it easier to listen to.
Thank you for your content as much as your presentation.
Can you do a video on the different fallacious arguments that are commonly used, and some examples for each?
'but could it be that you should map these truths also to yourself'
-I do apply these cautionary principles to myself.
I wish this guy continued to make videos.
He will, as shown in a reply on this comment thread.
And he did yay
He still is and they are wonderful
He released a video only a month ago!
I think I have learned more from your videos than 4 years of college. You realize people like me need your videos! Good job mate!
Fantastic video, I really liked how you stood up to the abuses and illegal and unethical behavior of the supervisors and administrators at the school. You definitely were fighting to make things better!
@TheraminTrees I'm in college studying Child Psychology...I eventually want to be a LPC. I'm fascinated by your videos..the psychological ones really bring home what my instructor is trying to say many times. thank you so very much for your work! I live for new videos from your channel!
*Me a moment ago:* Yay! A new TheraminTrees...from 6yrs ago...sigh...thx YT lol
Thanks you for your very kind message. I'd love to have the time to upload a lot more than I do. Though I should also be open about my abiding, conflicting hope of becoming redundant - of a world where reason is muscular enough to become the predominant default, and deal firmly and swiftly with abuse-facilitating unreason.
Does anyone else listen Theramintrees before bed?
You hit the nail directly on the head. I'm glad I've found your channel, as you have given voice to every idea that's been tumbling around inside my head. I just wish more people could question their own beliefs, and let go of the ones that don't hold up to scrutiny, because the world we are living in is dominated by so many bad ideas
_”Well I’m a bucket!”_
**cough** **cough** bucket-head
Having an open mind should mean being willing to hear new ideas, not accept them.
I'm going to use that myself.
Hey, a Kiwi is a New Zealander
Theramintrees your videos are wonderful. So much insightful information and never too opinionated. I admire how your mind works. Your videos have opened my already open mind up to new thought mechanisms and styles of thinking and has no doubt made me a better person in doing so. Thank you
Chris Hockaday Much appreciated. Cheers
I would love to see Theramin Trees apply his powerful reasoning skills towards something other than religion, like maybe The Venus Project and The Zeitgiest Movement. I cant figure out if TVP is pseudoscience or if Jacque Fresco is really a genius who has put together something very special.
I really want to know what you think about those two groups. Fair warning needs at least 12 hours of research to really get a handle on all the things. (Less time than the bible apparently stole from you).
Recommended viewing order of relevant ideas.
1 "Future by Design" tvp
2 "Zeitgiest Addendum" tvp and tzm
3. "Zeitgiest Moving Forward" tzm
4. Alfie Kohn the case against competition on youtube
5. TVP TZM sites for FAQs on specific questions. Then explore "culture in decline" on youtube.
If you get tired of the religion thing which for you is old hat. Many people are becoming interested in these new ideas and you do quality work regardless of you opinions.
Side bar--Weird how every human on the planet feels he/she is right most of the time regardless of what those beliefs are we feel justified in them.
rivenraven1 Ditto. Would be a very interesting take.
YeahGetThaT is that Ung Bok on your pic?
Yes.
Tony Jaa to be exact.
YeahGetThaT Tony is one talented guy.
Don't know how I missed this. Excellent as always old friend. Your work is still unmatched on this site.
Hey man leave my national animal alone! Other than that awesome vid, next time use the dodo
I wish you made videos more frequently, Theramin. These are awesome, and indeed a cautionary tale!
"Religion is a system of psychological group manipulation designed with the intent of limiting people’s understanding of reality and ability to think critically. The aim if this goal is to have a neatly organized society of factions that are unable to work together with one another. This safeguards the ruling class from any uprising because there results a situation where there is no single group large or powerful enough to challenge their rule, let alone identify it."
~Myself
+Geoff Stockton Memetic infection? Ludicrous.
CESSKAR
It seems as though your statement would be greatly aided by at least a couple more words. I understand what a memetic infection is. Are you saying that I'm calling religion a memetic infection? Are you accusing my of trying to start a memetic infection.
Your counter-argument of "Ludicrous" isn't a terribly challenging argument, either.
In fact, I've decided that my response to that counter argument shall be the following:
Nuh uh!
Geoff Stockton Alright, let's discuss. From your definition I understand the "dawkins' memetic infection" would be the cause of religion. That's what I meant. And that is what I find ludicrous. Also your definition but I'll try to keep rational so forget I said that.
So, your definition. The old conspiracy of the alpha male and the shaman "let's pretend some magical stupidity so they work and we have power". But you go further:
_The aim if this goal is to have a neatly organized society of factions that are unable to work together with one another._
I must ask how is religion involved in the creation of different "factions that are unable to work together". I think you are trying to tie marxism here but anyway I think I have another idea; what about herd structure, shared with all the primates, where there is an alpha male and the rest are vassals or complacents. Along with the start of civilizations (circa 6000 BC).
Besides I must say religion has arguably the contrary purpose you give it; bind people together. People are not equal, that much is evident, and out of the family it is very difficult for people to trust others (discrimination is innate, logically) so actually religions give social identity; making differents equal.
+CESSKAR Yeah, religion binds people together. Unless, someone's not of that religion, in which case they can go fuck themselves. Am i right?
vlad saioc Discrimination is a human trait. In the history of evolution, especially after sexual reproduction. Sorry, religion is not the "cause of all evil".
Sorry to hear about your throat problem TheraminTrees, I could listen to your voice all day.
Theremin, definitely looking forward to seeing the "boiling frog" video. In the mean time I'll go through your back catalog of videos I haven't watched yet. Thanks for making these. They are informative works of art to me. With your superb animation style, great voice and wonderful music.
i appreciate the crowbar metaphor of skepticism because it outlines how there must be room for thought between what we see and what we do, though in this case you applied it specifically to people who have already made up their mind.
in your use of it, you describe skepticism's wedge as allowing for 'more spontaneity', but i would argue that it can also be used to describe how gullibility and impulsivity should be fought. an important part of media literacy (and immunity to pseudoscience) is examining the context of a given idea, statement, or path of action; something manipulators often try to skip over or restrict.
This has been my experience with just about every psychology or sociology course I've ever taken. I challenged the ideas in the beginning, but ultimately I didn't have the fortitude to do so continuously throughout the year. Props for your resolve.
You are so articulate in how you present your argument, I always envy you knowledge.
Thanks for this video, I know how time consuming it is to collect all those information and find a way to encapsulate all those information in a 20 minutes clip while also editing and designing the appropriate graphics for them.
really well laid-out video, so great! Thanks for the work you've done here :D
Hey BC! :8) And thanks for the postcard from Prague - indeed a fabulous city, as one of my sisters has said. It was good to hear from you. Yes, the course was the reason I had to drop our musical jams - it came to consume all my time, which no other course has done. But yes - it gave me plenty to think about. As I said in the video, it had it's plusses too. But they were nowhere near enough. Hope you're both having a great 2013 xxx
I wish i had your clarity of mind to respond to such manipulative psychologists on the spot, ive had such a horrible experience In day hospitalisation for depression, and in therapy in general.
This kind of manipulation immediately regresses me and triggers a freezing flashback to my childhood making me unable to think coherently.
pathologizing every behaviour, ignoring real problems and criticisms, always behaving like something must be either wrong with you as person or at the very least your thinking, even when describing objective reality.
Its literally abuse in the form of gaslighting and they behave as if their trying to help when all they do is look for narcissistic affirmation of their own beliefs
Wow, what a great video. I'll ponder this for a while and then watch it again
Kudos.
There’s so many comments to go through, I’ll add this, without knowing if it has been covered.
I’ve found that another source of thinking that causes good people to do bad things is dogmatic ideologies based on striving towards towards political goals (which may entail utopian futures, or the preservation of traditions). Sometimes they wear pseudo scientific garb,sometimes mes they don’t not.
The people under the influence of this often have the same dualistic thinking that tend to dehumanize those who don’t partake in them.
Every time you or Qualia make another video I become very excited.
Every time I watch these videos I become more intelligent.
Wonderful new video. I absolutely love your and QualiaSoup's series. Wish they could be posted more often, or even if you gents did a e-course on how to think critically.
I truly enjoy hearing about your life stories and value that while you have a throat condition, you still make great videos for us to watch. Truly I thank and applaud you sir.
Hey Joe! So lovely to see your name come up. How the devil are you? Still making beautiful music? The selfish part of me always hopes you will upload again. But whatever you're up to these days, I hope all's well with you my friend.
bloody brilliant video mate. great oratory and graphics (particularly the baby you used to represent yourself) and the substance is top notch
Yes, the scope for parallels is quite large when you look at it, isn't it.