Do you believe in Astrology?

[BerenTebogo]

Thorough and succinct dissection of all aspects of the grand clusterfuck of ignorance that is the totality of all Astrological views:

http://www.badastronomy.com/bad/misc/astrology.html

For another, astrology promotes the worst thing in the world: uncritical thinking. The more we teach people to simply accept anecdotal stories, hearsay, cherry-picked data (picking out what supports your claims but ignoring what doesn't), and, frankly, out-and-out lies, the harder it gets for people to think clearly. If you cannot think clearly, you cannot function as a human being. I cannot stress this enough. Uncritical thinking is tearing this world to pieces, and while astrology may not be at the heart of that, it has its role.

[Stumblingdrunk]

that is what public polls are for Kuya

[foopy]

i would have bet it was vajra somehow voting 4 times.

(where has he been? i miss him)

[Mayareira]

Stop scaring "yes" voters.

[Kryssan]

He posted a thread recently. He forgot his crayons apparently though. Then he edited and added some colour.



I haven't seen Woozie in a while though.

[BerenTebogo]

Stop scaring "yes" voters.

Do I need to requote and bold the blurb about uncritical thinking? They should be scared. Not only is this thinking wrong, in every aspect, it literally is a measurable detriment to the quality of your life (not even getting into the monetary pitfall that is this bullshit). If you have ever made a decision based on the what sign the planets are under on next Thursday then you have irreparably damaged your overall potential as a human being. You have literally chosen to pass up hard work and determination as your motivating factors and chosen instead to leave meaningful choices of your life up to the babbling nonsense of con artists.

They should be scared.

They should be ashamed.

This is the 21st century. We are not nomadic civilizations who believe the sun needs to be appeased with human blood. Pull your ignorant-fuck asses out of the dark ages and realize that the only control anyone or anything has over your life, aside from random chaos, is the control you allow them to exert.

Fuck.

[BerenTebogo]

For your viewing pleasure: A roughly 1 degree cross section of the universe as seen from Earth. Every dot in this picture is a unique galaxy. Every galaxy contains give or take 200,000,000,000 stars. Each star has a unique planetary system.

Please explain to me, somehow, why we are affected by Pluto, a non-planet that is smaller than 6 moons within our own solar system alone, but not any of the trillions upon trillions of other stars and planets in the universe?

Spoiler: show

http://scienceblogs.com/startswithab...ter-square.jpg

DAMN LOGIC FUCKING RUINING MY BELIEFS.

[Kryssan]

This is the 21st century. We are not nomadic civilizations who believe the sun needs to be appeased with human blood.

Well, personally, I could stand with believing the sun needs to be appeased with human blood if I get to see some humans appeasing with their blood.

[Kerberoz]

[BerenTebogo]

I fucking love Penn & Teller.

[Jefe]

Nah.

[Hyan]

I'm a bit embarrassed to admit it, but when I look at the "personality horoscopes" or whatever they're called, they're pretty damn accurate about me and most of the people I know. I don't see much logic in it however.

I don't really buy that position of the stars nonsense though and daily/weekly/monthly/annual horoscopes can go to hell.

[Kryssan]

Pluto, a non-planet

Ok, now in before Miz/Woozie. One of them always gets upset over that. Can't remember which one.

[Marius]

i read my star sign daily.

then i think about how many different situations would fit to it and laugh

[BerenTebogo]

I'm a bit embarrassed to admit it, but when I look at the "personality horoscopes" or whatever they're called, they're pretty damn accurate about me and most of the people I know. I don't see much logic in it however.

I don't really buy that position of the stars nonsense though and daily/weekly/monthly/annual horoscopes can go to hell.

People are not the unique snowflakes that we enjoy believing we are. We, for the most part, share the same struggles, the same joys, the same worries, the same hardships. Our paths to the destination may not be the same but ultimately, we all want the same thing.

If you have a family, you worry about them. If you work, you worry about money. If you are a human, you have certain fears. Whatever you are now, you hope that one day you will be better. You hope to be a good person, a successful person, to live a long life. We all look at tough decisions with the same level of trepidation and uncertainty and our brain is eager to make any connections, no matter how small, that serve to soothe the tension and anxiety.

Why?

Because tension and anxiety are bad for us. It is the job of our brain to fix things that are bad for us. Our defense mechanisms, psychological, physical, or otherwise, exist as a result of millions of years of evolution. Our fears and insecurity are a necessary evolutionary imperative. It takes not even a high school level understand of Psychology and a bit of charisma to capitalize on the fears and insecurities of those who don't know any better.

The universe and life itself is wonderful enough as it is. We have no need to dress it up with cheap glitter from the dollar store. It is magnificent just the way it is if we allow ourselves to slow down and appreciate it.

[Heavencloud]

I read it on occasion, if it seems applicable then cool, if not then ok. I don't see how you could really "believe" in it or not, it's just there... unless you're really into it I guess.

[Alleya]

Hmm.. I am slight shy, definitely reliable, compared to most I like to think I'm intelligent but I'm definitely not a Psychologist/Doctor.. yet, I do worry about some of the stupidest shit, I'm quiet harsh on others when pissed off, and I am a perfectionist when it comes to work/gaming/relationships/keeping things in order/neat!

Yep I believe in it. Seems to pin point who I am and besides being shy, my friend who I grew up with is also a Virgo and he shares a lot of the same characteristics as I do.

edit - but I'm not gonna follow something on a piece of paper saying how I should feel, how I will experience my day/week/month because I think that's just plain bull shit.

Modest and shy - Nearly everyone believes they're modest. It's socially advantageous to not be seen as a braggart.

Meticulous and reliable - Who is going to say they are sloppy and unreliable?

Practical and diligent - Who doesn't want to believe that they are diligent? Who would say they are not practical?

Intelligent and analytica - No I'm stupid and gullible! Of course anyone would think this describes them.

Fussy and a worrier - Everyone worries about things and fusses over things. Everyone.

Overcritical and harsh - Many people would believe this too, and them temper it by saying it's only when they're being honest.

Perfectionist and conservative - Few people are going to admit that they leave jobs half-assed or unfinished.

"conservative" seems to be the only slightly concrete descriptor in this whole sign.

[BerenTebogo]

Ok, now in before Miz/Woozie. One of them always gets upset over that. Can't remember which one.

After pulling an all-nighter entertaining myself with all the long lectures and speeches on youtube by Neil deGrasse Tyson I was sure to correctly classify it

[Hyan]

People are not the unique snowflakes that we enjoy believing we are. We, for the most part, share the same struggles, the same joys, the same worries, the same hardships. Our paths to the destination may not be the same but ultimately, we all want the same thing.

If you have a family, you worry about them. If you work, you worry about money. If you are a human, you have certain fears. Whatever you are now, you hope that one day you will be better. You hope to be a good person, a successful person, to live a long life. We all look at tough decisions with the same level of trepidation and uncertainty and our brain is eager to make any connections, no matter how small, that serve to soothe the tension and anxiety.

Why?

Because tension and anxiety are bad for us. It is the job of our brain to fix things that are bad for us. Our defense mechanisms, psychological, physical, or otherwise, exist as a result of millions of years of evolution. Our fears and insecurity are a necessary evolutionary imperative. It takes not even a high school level understand of Psychology and a bit of charisma to capitalize on the fears and insecurities of those who don't know any better.

The universe and life itself is wonderful enough as it is. We have no need to dress it up with cheap glitter from the dollar store. It is magnificent just the way it is if we allow ourselves to slow down and appreciate it.

Yeah I know Sath, the thing is that I'd just like to get to know myself better, what are my pro's and con's and how I can make the best use of them. I want to be a better person, like you said.

When I look at how my sign is like, I see a lot of common characteristics, which in turn helps me to "find myself". I've no idea what kind of BS astrology uses to come up with all that stuff, but I notice a lot of similarities. Maybe I just want to believe that's the way I am.. but I don't think that's all there is to it.

[BerenTebogo]

Yeah I know Sath, the thing is that I'd just like to get to know myself better, what are my pro's and con's and how I can make the best use of them. I want to be a better person, like you said.

When I look at how my sign is like, I see a lot of common characteristics, which in turn helps me to "find myself". I've no idea what kind of BS astrology uses to come up with all that stuff, but I notice a lot of similarities. Maybe I just want to believe that's the way I am.. but I don't think that's all there is to it.

This is, purely without jest, 100% how astrology works:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_reading

The rainbow ruse

The rainbow ruse is a crafted statement which simultaneously awards the subject with a specific personality trait, as well as the opposite of that trait. With such a phrase, a cold reader can "cover all possibilities" and appear to have made an accurate deduction in the mind of the subject, despite the fact that a rainbow ruse statement is vague and contradictory. This technique is used since personality traits are not quantifiable, and also because nearly everybody has experienced both sides of a particular emotion at some time in their lives.

Statements of this type might include:

* "Most of the time you are positive and cheerful, but there has been a time in the past when you were very upset."
* "You are a very kind and considerate person, but when somebody does something to break your trust, you feel deep-seated anger."
* "I would say that you are mostly shy and quiet, but when the mood strikes you, you can easily become the center of attention."

A cold reader can choose from a variety of personality traits, think of its opposite, and then bind the two together in a phrase, vaguely linked by factors such as mood, time, or potential.

Edit: Also, don't forget our old friend http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias

FFXI is a case-study on CB and it is one of the most common, and most aggravating, traits that almost all people have in common.

Confirmation bias (also called confirmatory bias or myside bias) is a tendency for people to favor information that confirms their preconceptions or hypotheses, independently of whether they are true.[1][2] This results in people selectively collecting new evidence, interpreting evidence in a biased way, or selectively recalling information from memory.