I don't want to get sidetracked, Taylor. We can talk about the practical conclusions later. Right now, I'm not even sure that everyone is following the simple logic. Assume we agree on the specifics X. We then have:
A freethinker uses X to arrive at his beliefs. Han Solo used X to arrive at his theism (or any belief Y). Therefore, Han Solo is a freethinker. Several people have objected that they can't imagine how anyone could arrive at theism via X. But that's not relevant to the logical soundness of the conclusion. The only way to *logically* exclude theism from the above conclusion is to specifically include nontheism in the major premise. In other words, you must have: "A freethinker uses X to arrive at his beliefs, but only if he arrives at nontheism." The extra requirement is not advisable because it makes freethought internally inconsistent. (Freethinkers are supposed to be free of dogma, yet a requirement of nontheism is indistinguishable from a dogma.) That's the best argument for not including nontheism in the definition of freethought. If anyone offers a relevant criticism of that logic, then I will respond. Otherwise, the next step is to talk about the practical (as opposed to purely logical) implications. That's where most of you are coming from, I think, but it is important to me that I start at the beginning. It helps me avoid "retrofitting" my epistemology to exclude uncomfortable conclusions. Aaron On Oct 29, 12:00 pm, Taylor <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > <<Freethought is the use of logic, >> > > You'd need to add the criteria of 1) *valid* logic and 2) true > propositions. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Memphis Freethought Alliance" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/memphisfreethoughtalliance?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
