Another reply, April 19, again on the Huffington Post.
The latest (April 18, 2013) reaction, an excellent one, on the Huffington Post. The bottom line is that TED has made a tragic strategic mistake.
---
Brought to my attention by Craig Weiler.
"In this case, the brouhaha started when apparently skeptics by the names of Jerry Coyne and PZ Meyer tried to have a video by parapsychologist Rupert Sheldrake removed from TED talks because they felt he was unscientific...."
See Craig's blog for the full story: The psi wars come to TED
Or here for the TED site discussion, which shows the furor evoked by TED's censorship.
Or here for a discussion about this topic on the Daily Grail.
Or here for a "big picture" opinion by Craig Weiler.
This episode is just another shameful example of the psi taboo at work. It is promulgated by small-minded, loud-mouthed "skeptics" who intimidate editors with bullying tactics.
And now this, which is a predictable next step on the part of TED:
Some view this affair as a clash between those who hold a materialist worldview vs. some other (non-materialist?) worldview. My own opinion is that the research I do on psi phenomena is orthogonal to such ideologies. That's because the very meaning of "material" has changed so much over the past few centuries, and indeed even recently with the discovery of dark matter and energy, that to try to draw a strong distinction between material vs. non-material worldviews doesn't make sense. E.g., I am completely comfortable with the idea that one day psi will be discovered to be a property of matter. It would just be a more comprehensive understanding of matter than the one we have today.
TED's silent revolution. New commentary on the TED censorship.
(Updated 4-19-13)
Or here for the TED site discussion, which shows the furor evoked by TED's censorship.
Or here for a discussion about this topic on the Daily Grail.
Or here for a "big picture" opinion by Craig Weiler.
This episode is just another shameful example of the psi taboo at work. It is promulgated by small-minded, loud-mouthed "skeptics" who intimidate editors with bullying tactics.
And now this, which is a predictable next step on the part of TED:
TED Not Satisfied With Current Censorship: TEDxWestHollywood is Taken Down
Some view this affair as a clash between those who hold a materialist worldview vs. some other (non-materialist?) worldview. My own opinion is that the research I do on psi phenomena is orthogonal to such ideologies. That's because the very meaning of "material" has changed so much over the past few centuries, and indeed even recently with the discovery of dark matter and energy, that to try to draw a strong distinction between material vs. non-material worldviews doesn't make sense. E.g., I am completely comfortable with the idea that one day psi will be discovered to be a property of matter. It would just be a more comprehensive understanding of matter than the one we have today.
TED's silent revolution. New commentary on the TED censorship.
(Updated 4-19-13)
Posts
