Theos-Talk Archives (October 2001 Message tt00016)

leonmaurer@aol.com wrote:
> 
> Did you take Dal's statement personally? And, is your statement an even more
> emotional level argument (if his was so) to defend your own membership in a
> "temporal organization"?

I was trying to point out, graphically, that the statement contained a
basic logical fallacy called "Prejudicial Language", and showed an
equivalent statement to demonstrate. 

> In any case, why would Dal have to use an emotional level statement to
> convince anyone of what the Masters, Buddha, Krishna, Christ, et al,
> demonstrated or implied that they believed? Isn't that what theosophy
> teaches fundamentally -- to detach oneself from the forms of this world -- be
> "in the world and not of the world," so to speak?

Yes, that was my point. I am sorry that it was not clearer.

> So, why don't you discuss the truth of the statement or ask a question of you
> disagree rather than pick on the author's means of saying it? 

I didn't say I disagreed. And THAT is important to the point, as well.
If you re-read my note, and hold back emotional reactions, you will see
that I was not disagreeing with his statement as much as pointing out
that his statement DID contain emotional distractions designed to
convince people to agree with it not because it's right, but to avoid
being accused of being "unwise". Note that I only used the phrase
"idiot" as an example, but you took it as if I had actually used the
phrase to make a statement:

> That's not very wise from a theosophical point of view. But, does that make 
> you an idiot? I'm sure we all know a lot of very intelligent but not so wise 
> people.
> Does that make them idiots?

You fell into the logical trap, and it wasn't even being set. How much
more insidious is a logical trap that is set on purpose? And THAT is why
I pointed it out, and did so harshly.

Below is the original exchange, for reference:

> In a message dated 09/30/01 10:18:08 PM, bartl@sprynet.com writes:
> 
> >dalval14@earthlink.net wrote:
> >> The main point is that those who are truly WISE never attach themselves
> >>or endorse any temporal ORGANIZATION.
> >
> > That is a statement trying to convince on an emotional level,
> >equivalent to, say, "only an idiot would believe what you just said."
> >
> > Bart Lidofsky