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Guest post: What evidence was available

Originally a comment by Jim Baerg on Stuck in presentism.

It was only with Kepler’s elliptical orbits that a heliocentric model predicted planetary motions better than a geocentric model.

Galileo’s observation of Jupiter’s moons showed that there are at least some objects that definitely orbit something other than the earth. The phases of Venus are hard (impossible ?) to explain in a non-heliocentric model.

For a non-dogmatic thinker, it was really only the combination of all of those developments that would remove reasonable doubt about heliocentrism. Though the lack of observable parallax of stars bothered scientists until measurements became good enough to detect the parallax in the 19th century.

Similarly in the case of continental drift/plate tectonics. There was … Read the rest

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Guest post: What evidence was available
By Ophelia Benson, July 26, 2024

Originally a comment by Jim Baerg on Stuck in presentism.

It was only with Kepler’s elliptical orbits that a heliocentric model predicted planetary motions better than a geocentric model.

Galileo’s observation of Jupiter’s moons showed that there are at least some objects that definitely orbit something other than the earth. The phases of Venus are hard (impossible ?) to explain in a non-heliocentric model.

For a non-dogmatic thinker, it was really only the combination of all of those developments that would remove reasonable doubt about heliocentrism. Though the lack of observable parallax of stars bothered scientists until measurements became good enough to detect the parallax in the 19th century.

Similarly in the case of continental drift/plate tectonics. There was … Read the rest

Archives
Bad Moves
Articles
Flashback
In Focus
Latest News
Letters
Notes and Comment Blog

Guest post: What evidence was available 

Originally a comment by Jim Baerg on Stuck in presentism.

It was only with Kepler’s elliptical orbits that a heliocentric model predicted planetary motions better than a geocentric model.

Galileo’s observation of Jupiter’s moons showed that there are at least some objects that definitely orbit something other than the earth. The phases of Venus are hard (impossible ?) to explain in a non-heliocentric model.

For a non-dogmatic thinker, it was really only the combination of all of those developments that would remove reasonable doubt about heliocentrism. Though the lack of observable parallax of stars bothered scientists until measurements became good enough to detect the parallax in the 19th century.

Similarly in the case of continental drift/plate tectonics. There was … Read the rest

Hannibal what now? 

Trump has a new fixation: Hannibal Lecter. Makes sense.

Trump mentioned Hannibal Lecter again last night, during a rally in North Carolina. During a rambling tangent about immigrants, Trump said: “They’re coming from everywhere. They’re coming from all over the world, from prisons and jails, and mental institutions and insane asylums. You know, they go crazy when I say, ‘The late great Hannibal Lecter,’ OK? They say, ‘Why would he mention Hannibal Lecter? He must be cognitively in trouble.’ No no no, these are real stories. Hannibal Lecter from Silence of the Lamb [sic]. He’s a lovely man. He’d love to have you for dinner.”

These stories really are stories, yes, but that doesn’t make them true accounts … Read the rest

Chick-ken 

Trump doesn’t want to debate Harris. Of course he doesn’t.

In a statement released Thursday night, Trump’s campaign explained that they would be putting any future presidential debates on hold.

“Given the continued political chaos surrounding Crooked Joe Biden and the Democrat Party, general election debate details cannot be finalized until Democrats formally decide on their nominee,” said Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung.

Childish.

“There is a strong sense by many in the Democrat party—namely Barack Hussein Obama—that Kamala Harris is a Marxist fraud who cannot beat President Trump, and they are still holding out for someone ‘better,’” said Cheung. “Therefore, it would be inappropriate to schedule things with Harris because Democrats very well could still change their minds.”

Still … Read the rest

Fires 

Oh shit. Half of Jasper has burned up.

I haven’t been there but I know people who have, and loved it.

Huge, fast-moving wildfires have destroyed up to half of the historic Canadian town of Jasper, officials say, as firefighters try to save as many buildings as possible. Entire streets have been levelled by the blazes in Alberta province, with video showing smouldering rubble where homes once stood.

…

During a news conference on Thursday, a tearful Alberta Premier Danielle Smith struggled at times to recount the scale of the damage, but said “potentially 30 to 50%” of buildings had been destroyed.

“There is no denying that this is the worst nightmare for any community,” she said, adding that

… Read the rest
Breaking news 

Dear BBC droning on and on about drag queens again.

When Sab Samuel became the first drag queen to read children’s stories to youngsters at UK libraries it sparked protests across the country.

Oh no, those horrible naughty people who aren’t particularly thrilled to see mockery of women made a feature of libraries.

Sab, who is better known for their stage name Aida H Dee, is used to being challenged. Growing up, they were too scared to go to school. Sab said bullies attacked them while teachers said they “could not do anything to help”.

Everything changed for Sab, they said, when they performed in drag as an evil villainess in their Bath school play at the age of

… Read the rest
Guest post: Stuck in presentism 

Originally a comment by Sonderval on Activists shocked to learn of other views.

Well duh, what would you expect it to reflect? Your views?

Yes, people probably expect exactly that because they think that different from all people in the past, their current moral and ethical values are the endpoint of ethics evolution. It is totally inconceivable to most people that some things we today take for granted may be viewed as horribly wrong in the future. Even if you point out that people 200 years ago thought the same thing, they still do not see the relativity of the situation.

Furthermore, they also do not see how they stand on the shoulders of past people to actually arrive … Read the rest

To have a legitimate process 

We want Trump to lose, right? So this is good news:

Barack and Michelle Obama endorse Kamala Harris for president

In a joint statement announcing the endorsement, the Obamas praised Harris and listed her accomplishments.

“But Kamala has more than a resume,” the statement said. “She has the vision, the character, and the strength that this critical moment demands. There is no doubt in our mind that Kamala Harris has exactly what it takes to win this election and deliver for the American people.”

…

Obama and Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee, have been in touch regularly, and he has been serving as a sounding board for her as he has over the 20 years they’ve known each other, a source

… Read the rest
Guest post: From the point of view of a landowner Guest post: From the point of view of a landowner 

Originally a comment by Tim Harris on Where’s the mud?

Lady Mondegreen is absolutely right — idealising Nature (with a captal ’N’) as something greater than human beings was very much part of Romanticism in all its forms (Wordsworth, for example), though Constable – unlike Turner – tends to prefer more ‘human’ landscapes. Before Romanticism, there were the 17th & 18th century landscapes that harked back very obviously and nostalgically to the pastoral tradition in poetry – ‘Nymphs & shepherds dance no more/ By sandy Ladon’s lilied banks…’), or the landscapes that seemed to be painted from the point of view of a landowner, high up and fondly contemplating his domain.

And it is also the case that Chinese & … Read the rest

Not fair use 

Ew.

It’s a mural on a wall in Bergen – my city’s sister city, as it happens.

It’s revolting.… Read the rest

Where’s the mud? 

More of the same, or no?

The National Gallery will display John Constable’s famous painting ‘The Hay Wain’ as a “contested landscape” at an upcoming exhibition.

The 1821 painting is a British classic, depicting a rural landscape near Constable’s native Suffolk. The idyllic scene shows a cart and horse travelling through the tranquil River Stour.

But some critics say the painting conceals a dark secret. Not present in the scene are the poorer workers of the time, many of whom were suffering from hunger and poverty.

…

The new exhibition will attempt to explain the full social context of the painting. It will be displayed alongside satirical images from the period which give another perspective on the politics of the

… Read the rest
Activists shocked to learn of other views 

19th century monument reflects 19th century views, exclaims pack of fools. Well duh, what would you expect it to reflect? Your views?

Prince Albert’s memorial in Kensington is “problematic” and “highly offensive”, drawing on “racial stereotypes” that reflect a “Victorian view of the world that differs from mainstream views held today”, its presentist custodians at The Royal Parks charity say (Evening Standard, GB News, Telegraph).

That’s because it was created by people who had the views that people had then as opposed to the views that people have now. I think you’ll find that’s a general pattern. It’s difficult to adopt the views of people a century or two in the future because you don’t … Read the rest

A tiny hint A tiny hint 

News media continue to lie about men who commit crimes of violence. Brighton and Hove News for example:

Brighton woman, 70, appears before court charged with murdering husband

Brighton woman, 70, is of course not a woman.

A 70-year-old Brighton woman has appeared in court by video link charged with murdering her husband in their Kemp Town flat. Joanna Rowland-Stuart was aided by a British Sign Language interpreter at Lewes Crown Court this morning (Wednesday 24 July).

Rowland-Stuart, formerly known as John Stuart, appeared by video link from Downview prison, in Surrey, but did not enter a plea over the death of her husband Andrew Rowland-Stuart.

Mr Rowland-Stuart was a former lorry driver previously known as Angie or Angela Rowland,

… Read the rest
Guest post: Enough harshing the mellow 

Originally a comment by Screechy Monkey on It’s not a gold star.

I think you’re all being really harsh here.

First, Biden just did an incredibly hard thing. Yes, it was the right thing to do, for his party and the country. Yes, you could say that he was morally obligated to do it. But there are a lot of things that people should do that are really hard to do on a personal level, and a lot of people fail that test. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, for one.

Joe Biden spent decades of his life dreaming of being president one day. He gets there, and does a good job, and now he’s being asked to do something that no … Read the rest

It’s not a gold star 

Sigh. This is just dense. Thick. Dumb. Uncomprehending. Point-missing. Reality-ignoring.

Biden says:

President Joe Biden on Wednesday said abandoning his reelection campaign and endorsing his vice president, Kamala Harris, as the Democratic candidate was the best way to unite the country and save democracy, despite his ambition to win a second term.

Biden’s announcement to end his presidential bid on Sunday followed a disastrous June debate with Donald Trump, which exacerbated questions about his ability to defeat the Republican candidate, or to serve another four years if he succeeded.

In his address to the nation from the Oval Office, the 81-year-old president said he believed he deserved to be reelected based on his record during his first term.

!!!… Read the rest

Yeah but what was she wearing? 

A drag queen and another man do the Olympics torch thing, and now this.

Women don’t exist or if they do exist they don’t matter, and by the way, if they’re running for high office be sure to tell them how to dress.… Read the rest

Self-immolation 

A piece of advice. Don’t go for a hike in extremely hot weather. If you do, take as much water as you can carry and don’t go far. If you don’t take much water and you do go far…well, you won’t come back.

A 56-year-old woman died while hiking near a state park in southwestern Utah over the weekend after running out of water on a sweltering day, police said.

Emergency crews responded near Quail Creek State Park on Sunday to a report of a hiker “in distress due to not having enough water and the temperature being 106 degrees,” the Hurricane City Police Department said in a statement.

Too hot. If you don’t have enough water, turn back … Read the rest

Seasoned attorney v hardened criminal 

Prosecutor v felon:

Vice President Harris vowed to reprise her role as a prosecutor on the campaign trail while running against former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee and a convicted felon.

Those are all one person. Clumsy writing makes it look as if Harris is running against three people, but no, Trump is the nominee and the convicted felon.

Harris, too, quickly pivoted to the kind of rhetoric she said to expect from her on the campaign trail — that of a seasoned attorney, who before she was elected as vice president and a United States senator from California served as that state’s elected attorney general and before that, a courtroom prosecutor.

“In those roles, I took

… Read the rest
Angry god file 

Goddy terrorism in the news:

The Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary has been found guilty of directing the terrorist group al-Muhajiroun (ALM) and drumming up cross-border support for the banned organisation online.

After a trial at Woolwich crown court in south London, Choudary was convicted of having a “caretaker role” in directing ALM.

Choudary came as close to becoming a household name as an extremist can get in the UK through his media appearances and controversial actions such as protesting at UK soldiers’ funerals. Security experts have claimed Choudary influenced dozens of British jihadists.

But the trained solicitor’s apparent ability to act just within the bounds of the law ended in 2016 when he was convicted of supporting Islamic State

… Read the rest
La flamme 

Two men.

Zero women.

Women erased again.

Women barely exist. Women are at home mopping the floor. Women are passive blobs who don’t do anything. Men are the people who matter; women are the machines for making more men.

… Read the rest

An extra £45m 

Oh good, the struggling royals get to have more money. That’s a relief.

The monarchy is to get an extra £45m due to soaring profits from the Crown Estate. The income boost comes from a surge in profits from the estate, due to six new offshore wind farms.

Profits from the Crown Estate have increased to £1.1bn, which in turn will lead to a rise in the Sovereign Grant, which pays for the Royal Family’s running costs. The grant will rise from £86.3m in 2024/25 to to £132m in 2025/2026 – which will help pay for the last stages of renovating Buckingham Palace, officials said.

How lovely for them. Might be able to afford an occasional night out, as … Read the rest