Theory of Mind/Evolution of Human Consciousness

Jesse S. Cook III (jcook@AWOD.COM)
Tue, 30 Jul 1996 10:56:41 -0400

John McCreery has taken to commenting on his own comments in his reply of 29
July to my reply of the same date to his reply of 28 July. In the latter,
he says:

"Without explicit mechanisms to account for the occurence [sic], type and
distribution of whatever...we want to be talking about, waving the words
around is nothing but blowing smoke."

In the former, he says in reply:

"Have you or anyone else here specified the environmental conditions that
select for, say, belief in Allah, going to confession or Sunday school,
participating in Taiwanese pig sacrifices, (add your own examples)?"

No, I daresay we haven't, John. I'm not sure that environmental conditions
has anything to do with those things. Do you mean, like, "there's something
in the air" that would cause people to do those things?

Later, he says:

"If....you could say, for example, that Weber explicitly mentions the
reversability of rationalization in such and such a work, then I would stand
corrected."

You will stand corrected even if I can't make any such reference, which I
can't for the simple reason that he didn't "mention" any such thing. Why
should he? It stands to reason that the process of rationalization, as it
is explicated by Weber, can and no doubt is reversed from time to time.
That is just common sense.

You earlier refer to: "a process that is presumed to be unidirectional."
Presumed by whom? You're the only one I know of that has made that presumption.

Immediately after the "Later" quote comes a paragraph that is completely
unintelligible, and this is followed by:

"Hand-waving, ad hominem, appeals to authority without spelling out what the
purported authorities have to say. [Is that a complete sentence?] Call it
smoke or call it snow. [Ditto?] It's all the same to me."

I didn't call it (whatever "it" is) "smoke", you did. And you talked about
"waving words" not "hands". How does one wave hands in e-mail?

As for *ad hominem* arguements, you ought to know. I only responded in kind
to you posting of 29 July 1996.


Jesse S. Cook III E-Mail: jcook@awod.com
Post Office Box 40984 or
Charleston, SC 29485 USA 201-9573@mcimail.com

"Our attitude toward others is not determined by who *they* are;
it is determined by who *we* are."