Cont: Proof of Immortality VIII

My claim is that you have been treating this as a debate (naturally enough) -- when, if you could treat this as a "teaching moment," we might be able to make some progress.

No.

First, stop blaming your critics for the lack of progress. You are the obstruction. We have a second source of evidence for this proposition, so don't try to argue it. You tried to play your customary games elsewhere and they told you to knock it off and get to the point. You did, and they saw immediately that you had nothing besides the game-playing. It's obvious to us too that you have nothing beyond game-playing; unfortunately there's nothing about that that's against ISF rules, so no basis to challenge your ongoing participation on those grounds.

Second, we have been treating this as a teaching moment for years. But you ignore it and insist on pretending to be the teacher, not the student. I and a few others expended probably more than 200 man-hours each in 2017 trying to explain basic concepts to you, only to be insulted or ignored in return. You are not the teacher, Jabba. And history has proven you to be a terrible student. When I was teaching college I could have literally taught someone the entire field of computational statistics in the time I've expended trying to hammer basic concepts into your head to no avail.

Third, you display no interest in progress, so stop pretending that's your goal. Every time we make some, you dissolve it in a fringe reset and change up all the language. Stop pretending this isn't a debate -- one that you lost years ago and are just trying to perpetuation for personal reasons.

It did take me a while to realize that you knew much more about Bayesian Statistics than I did (sorry about that).

Almost everyone in this thread knows more about mathematics, statistics, and logic than you do. You need to extend your apology to everyone whose expertise you have ignored or maligned. I'm serious about this. If you're serious about learning, you first need to apologize to everyone who's been trying to teach a problem student. You boasted that you ignore practically all posts, and even of the ones you do read you only read the first line. When you approach the forum in such prima donna fashion, it's really hard to make stick the accusation that your critics are somehow derelict in a duty to educate you.

Make a broad apology, covering all your many sins, and then maybe we'll consider forgiving you.

But, when I saw that you did, I changed my perspective and was honestly trying to just understand, exactly where you were at odds with my reasoning. I started asking a lot of questions.

That's a bald-faced lie.

This was your arrogant boast less than a week ago, long after jsfisher handed you your head.
I don't know -- or, don't remember -- the right words to use, but so far, I think that I understand the concepts better than most (if not all) of you guys.

Stop pretending that after five years you've suddenly changed your entire character. Since all your other social-engineering attempts didn't work, now you're just trying to curry enough sympathy to blunt the well-deserved criticism that's been lately heaped upon you.

You came at this debate with a know-it-all perspective, dismissing almost everything that everyone else says in favor of your declaration that you still must be somehow correct, clinging frantically to anything and everything that seemed to dispute your critics. Although you learned to avoid it overtly here, when you went elsewhere you renewed your disdain for atheists and scientists. There's no use pretending that has suddenly changed.

Jsfisher and others proposed tests to expose your ignorance. They succeeded. But before they succeeded, you tried every social-engineering trick you could think of to get people to feed you the answers so that you could pretend you knew them all along. You shamed people for not being "helpful." You played the victim. That's what you do. You don't actually have an argument. You just have a palette of social engineering tricks that is fairly common among fringe theorists. But we're onto your shameless tricks, Jabba. Just because the rules require us to suffer them doesn't mean we have to let you get away with them.

So now, if possible, please try to treat me as a student, who has brought to you a crazy mathematical conclusion, and you just want to help me understand why/where my conclusion is wrong.

Stop pretending, Jabba. You just want someone to give you the answers so you can pretend you knew them all along. That's what you do. You'll be right back pretending to be an expert as soon as you can convince people to stop criticizing you. Keep in mind, you "hope [people] would just agree."

You know you've been told what the problems with your proof are. Here's the link again. http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/showpost.php?p=11871278&postcount=3198

You know you can't answer these. Your only attention to them has been to try to turn them into yet another way to to tie your critics up in your usual shell game. You know full well the purpose of that test is to prevent you from playing it. You know what the problems are and you know on what footing they have to be addressed in order to be acceptable in form to your critics. So get to it and quit whining about how badly everyone is treating you.

So, what should I be doing re the PDF?

You should be learning elsewhere what one needs to know about basic statistics before coming back to defend your proof. Nobody here is required to spoon-feed you the basic statistics information you should have already learned before professing to be be an expert. Your critics have correctly told you what is wrong with your proof. Your inability to understand neither the proof nor the criticism is not something obligates people to expend any more time correcting your ignorance more than they already have. You have to take the responsibility to learn. Blaming your critics for being naturally unwilling to teach an arrogant student is just more arrogance.

Oh, while we're thinking about it: you probably need to go to everyplace where you've claimed to be a "certified statistician" and correct that wholly misguided claim, which you now seem to have retracted. And let's here no more about any such claims to expertise.

How does that fit into the problem?

The same way probability density it fits into every statistics problem that ever lived. In beginning statistics we generally stick with probabilities as scalar real-valued numbers because it's easier for the concepts to sink in. But in real life, probabilities are functions that describe the density across some interesting domain. Specifying the parameters of those functions and applying calculus gives us real-number values when those need to happen. But otherwise the basic concepts you learned in the only statistics class you've evidently taken are extended to embrace functional values, and that's where the real science of statistics lies. You need to learn about that before you claim you've solved a very vexing problem using statistics that apparently is so highly evolved only you get it. If you but look back over all the posts I and others have written over the past twelve months -- you ignored them all before, remember? -- you can probably get some idea of what you're lacking.

Now stop trying to get people to do your homework for you. You want to be seen as a statistical genius who's proven a hard problem in philosophy? Pay your damn dues!
 
Gotta agree with Jay here (again)

You don't want people here to teach you what's wrong with your proof.

You want them to teach you how to make it "right".
You think you can trick us into giving you the magic solution that will make your 'proof' work.
 
js,

- I've been trying to quote our discussion back through page 31 (of this chapter) at least. There must have been almost 40 entries. But, I lost the whole copy...

I would have preferred you'd simply addressed my last post of substance (from April 12) rather than quoting a throw-away post of mine only to step off in a direction of your choosing.

- My claim is that you have been treating this as a debate (naturally enough) -- when, if you could treat this as a "teaching moment," we might be able to make some progress.

My disappointment with this statement surpasses my disappointment with your previous remark.
 
js,

- I've been trying to quote our discussion back through page 31 (of this chapter) at least. There must have been almost 40 entries. But, I lost the whole copy...

- My claim is that you have been treating this as a debate (naturally enough) -- when, if you could treat this as a "teaching moment," we might be able to make some progress.
- It did take me a while to realize that you knew much more about Bayesian Statistics than I did (sorry about that). But, when I saw that you did, I changed my perspective and was honestly trying to just understand, exactly where you were at odds with my reasoning. I started asking a lot of questions.

- So now, if possible, please try to treat me as a student, who has brought to you a crazy mathematical conclusion, and you just want to help me understand why/where my conclusion is wrong. So far, I can't figure that out, even though it would seem like I must be wrong -- since none of the experts in the relevant math and science have come to the same conclusion...
- So please, see if you can treat me as a "slow" student that you really want to help -- with direct answers to slow questions.

- So, what should I be doing re the PDF? How does that fit into the problem?

No, you don't get to do another fringe reset by introducing another character to the stage.

Take away the change of costume and the hangdog expression, you've still got the same actor underneath, behaving in the same old way.

Boo! Hiss! Get off!
 
Aw hell, Jabba

Now look. You’ve believed in your own immortality for generations. The neuronal pathway that your brain uses to generate that notion must, by this time, be so well-worn that it’s calcified. (A dreadful image, but I mean it only metaphorically, honest.) You’ll never be free of that conviction.

Why isn’t that enough? Why do you pursue this ludicrous attempt to prove anything? You’ve received nothing but patient, and increasingly impatient, correction in detail. You’ve been reasoned with, refuted, and dismissed as a crank. You’ve been the target of crass lampoonery (that was me) and even of some semi-sympathetic counseling (me again, among others).

So I’ll ask once more: Why isn’t that enough?
 
Questions such as "Why is this person doing this thing?" are obviously notoriously difficult to answer, and often inappropriate for third parties to attempt to answer. Not that I really trust Jabba to be truthful here about his motives, but you have to let people speak for themselves even if it's to lie.

But on this particular question Jabba has left us clues. I read them as saying it's not so much about his belief, but about our disbelief. He wants to show that the atheist/skeptic position is irrational on the subject of immortality. Then he wants to generalize that atheists/skeptics are habitually irrational if not downright dishonest on all such questions. This and the Shroud thread are ways in which Jabba has tried to show that positions held by skeptics on "spiritual" matters are not faithful to science, faithful to reason, faithful to the evidence, or faithful to their own supposed beliefs. As you have seen, that demonstration is mostly about childish debate tricks, word games, stonewalling, and outright lies.

Really the mathematical proof Jabba is seeking in this thread is not
P(immortality) > P(materialism)​
but rather
Jabba > skepticism/atheism.​

Hidden in most of his arguments is the notion that his mode of thinking is just simply better than everyone else's, and that if skeptics, scientists, and atheists would just open their minds the way he has. they would appreciate his genius. In other words, it seems to be aimed more at ego reinforcement than at an actual proof for immortality.
 
Hidden in most of his arguments is the notion that his mode of thinking is just simply better than everyone else's, and that if skeptics, scientists, and atheists would just open their minds the way he has. they would appreciate his genius. In other words, it seems to be aimed more at ego reinforcement than at an actual proof for immortality.


His description of his thinking as “holistic” is a little unfortunate given that the term has been co-opted by alternative medicine, in which context it can be taken to mean “not demonstrably effective”.
 
His description of his thinking as “holistic” is a little unfortunate given that the term has been co-opted by alternative medicine, in which context it can be taken to mean “not demonstrably effective”.

Irrespective of "holistic" medicine, Jabba's attempt to contrast "holistic thinking" with "analytical thinking" is something he borrowed from old pop psychology and is not a thing in either academia or clinical practice.

Jabba professes to be a "holistic" thinker, but he has provided no evidence that he is. He claims his critics are limited to "analytical" thinking, but provides no evidence that they are. He claims his proof is more appropriate to "holistic" thinking, but cannot reconcile its rigorous mathematical nature to what he describes "holistic" thinking to be.

As usual, it comes down to magical thinking and special pleading. He claims there's a mode of thinking that he must be better at than his critics, and that this mode of thinking is what enables him to succeed at seeing the validity of the proof where his critics fail. Ergo, Jabba > skeptics.
 
In my old western mode,

Now you fellers stomp that brake n haul the sam hill up. I axed ole Jabb a question, n he kin answer fer hisself. And I reckon he's jest about to.

Ain't that right, Jabba?
 
- I've been trying to quote our discussion back through page 31 (of this chapter) at least. There must have been almost 40 entries. But, I lost the whole copy...

And yet you are always too frazzled to respond to anyone with honesty. Funny that.

- My claim is that you have been treating this as a debate (naturally enough) -- when, if you could treat this as a "teaching moment," we might be able to make some progress.

We can't use it as a teaching method when the only one who needs to learn anything is absolutley immune to anyone trying to reason with him.

We'll give you a "teaching moment" when you pull your fingers out of your ears and ACTUALLY (CENSORED) LISTEN!

It did take me a while to realize that you knew much more about Bayesian Statistics than I did (sorry about that). But, when I saw that you did, I changed my perspective and was honestly trying to just understand, exactly where you were at odds with my reasoning. I started asking a lot of questions.

Jabba... just who the hell do you think you are talking to? You're the one who rolled up in here with your superior attitude about perfecting the art of debate and were going to demonstrate it on a bunch of "non-holistic" skeptics.

We all know that. You can't play the "Oh I'm a slow learner" card in the GODDAMN THREAD YOU STARTED EXPLICITLY BECAUSE YOU THINK YOU ARE BETTER THAN US.

So now, if possible, please try to treat me as a student, who has brought to you a crazy mathematical conclusion, and you just want to help me understand why/where my conclusion is wrong.

Okay. If you don't start paying attention in class, we're gonna fail you.

So far, I can't figure that out, even though it would seem like I must be wrong -- since none of the experts in the relevant math and science have come to the same conclusion.

Jabba listen to your own insanity. When even you (pretend to since nobody here buys this) admit that everything says you should be wrong but offer up a meek "But I still think I'm right" what is there to teach you?

So please, see if you can treat me as a "slow" student that you really want to help -- with direct answers to slow questions.

And this is different from the last 50 times you lied and said you would listen and this time you really mean it... how exactly?
 
- I've run out of ideas for forwarding our conflict, so unless someone actually wants to discuss this some more, I'll try again to move on. Good luck in your searches.
 
- I've run out of ideas for forwarding our conflict,
We graciously accept the acknowledgement of your defeat. You had an idea, you tried every trick you could think of to prove it was valid and came up empty at every turn.

so unless someone actually wants to discuss this some more, I'll try again to move on.
I think we've pretty well demolished every imaginable sub-sub-sub issue you've brought up in addition to demolishing the larger context. You couldn't think of anything that might forward your argument even one inch?

Good luck in your searches.

Our "searches" for what?
 
- I've run out of ideas for forwarding our conflict...

If you've run out of anything, it's ways to disguise your known-broken argument to try to fool people into believing it. Keep in mind we get to see how you fare when you can't as easily try to blame others for your failure.

And it's not "our conflict." It's your failed proof. You claimed to be able to prove mathematically that you were immortal. You obviously can't because you don't actually know math or logic, and these fine people here have been diligent enough to help you see that. The fact that you can't give them the credit they deserve says volumes, Mr Savage.

...so unless someone actually wants to discuss this some more...

Oh, please. Do you ever stop?

Here's the list of broad-strokes errors you've been making.
http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/showpost.php?p=11871278&postcount=3198

I've been trying since June 2017 to get you to address them in a way that isn't just a continuation of your shell game. You have no interest whatsoever in doing that. You just want to keep rearranging the shells for another year. Alternatively you could post the PDF that jsfisher asked for, to prove you're as smart as you claimed to be. There are many ways people have attempted to engage you over your proof, but it seems you're not interested unless that engagement is either uncritical praise for your self-proclaimed genius or any sort of attack on your critics.

A guy who boasts about how many posts he ignores or only skims really doesn't get to whine about much he thinks the other side is letting down the debate. You really need to stop blaming other people for your failures. It's childish and tedious, and if that's all you have then you probably do need to find an audience who's easier to manipulate.

...I'll try again to move on.

This will be your third flounce in a year. The question is not why you leave, buy why you keep coming back to repeat the same exercise. You tell us each time that you just could stay away. But why can't you stay away? You clearly have no valid proof. You clearly don't have the rhetorical talents or debating skill to defend one. You clearly have little if any interest in what anyone else but you says, and complain constantly about how shabbily they're supposedly treating you. Worse, it's credible to believe you simply need fodder at your critics' expense for a self-stroking blog you're writing elsewhere, and have no interest whatsoever in a debate here.

When you come back, as you assuredly will, you need to do more than play Folksy Grandfather and pretend everyone finds that cute. When you return, you need to straight-up give a thinking person a good reason why he should engage you. Deal?
 

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