tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post3641618405360203852..comments2023-12-01T11:40:00.045+11:00Comments on Dikkii's Diatribe: Open source wooDikkiihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-23928265749341094182008-08-16T00:37:00.000+10:002008-08-16T00:37:00.000+10:00Altie woo is just too easy. I am impressed, thank...Altie woo is just too easy. I am impressed, thanks Dunc.Dikkiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-30228593865826248672008-08-15T19:53:00.000+10:002008-08-15T19:53:00.000+10:00Ha! That's Wikipedia for you...Speaking of which, ...Ha! That's Wikipedia for you...<BR/><BR/>Speaking of which, have you seen <A HREF="http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2008/08/naughty_skeptics_naughty_bad_skeptics.php" REL="nofollow">this</A>? Looks like a few other folks are thinking along the same lines as you...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-73998185781220381022008-08-14T23:24:00.000+10:002008-08-14T23:24:00.000+10:00I checked out the Bhagwan's entry in Wikipedia las...I checked out the Bhagwan's entry in Wikipedia last night. It's remarkably sympathetic towards him and portrays him as a naive puppet of his personal assistant.<BR/><BR/>I don't recall much of their move to Oregon, but I bet the locals thought it was another potential Jonestown.Dikkiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-10219463458686323102008-08-14T22:23:00.000+10:002008-08-14T22:23:00.000+10:00Good question. My guess would be something to do w...Good question. My guess would be something to do with Rev. Moon buying his own newspaper and getting crowned King of the World in the US Congress, but then I'm bitter like that...<BR/><BR/>The really funny thing about Osho is that if you read his own words, rather than those of his followers, he's pretty clear that anyone dumb and needy enough to follow a guru deserves everything they get, until they learn not to. I wish I had the brass neck...<BR/><BR/>(I stayed for a while on a farm up near Lismore with some folks who were into Osho - had the Osho tarot deck, got the newsletters and everything. Really nice people, but not too perceptive...)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-60113935490369436432008-08-14T00:40:00.000+10:002008-08-14T00:40:00.000+10:00Oh the Bhagwan. I'd forgotten about him.How come ...Oh the Bhagwan. I'd forgotten about him.<BR/><BR/>How come we don't hear much about sex cults these days?Dikkiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-54147072183590932962008-08-14T00:20:00.000+10:002008-08-14T00:20:00.000+10:00I like to think that there are bounds to human gul...<I>I like to think that there are bounds to human gullibility</I><BR/><BR/>Yeah, I would <I>like</I> to think that too... Unfortunately, I'm becoming ever more convinced that, as Einstein apparently said "only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the universe."<BR/><BR/><I>After all, wasn't the Ouidja Board invented as a joke?</I><BR/><BR/>I have no idea. However, I'm pretty damn sure that both Aleister Crowley and Osho (aka Chandra Mohan Jain / Acharya Rajneesh / Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh) were not merely taking the piss, but flamboyantly pushing the theoretical boundaries of piss-taking, <I>and</I> rubbing their followers faces in it at every opportunity, and look how <I>they</I> turned out...<BR/><BR/>If there <I>are</I> limits to human gullibility, they're so far out as to be practically meaningless.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-78493873119704915652008-08-13T09:57:00.000+10:002008-08-13T09:57:00.000+10:00Dunc, Maybe I'm terminally optimistic, but I like...Dunc,<BR/> <BR/>Maybe I'm terminally optimistic, but I like to think that there are bounds to human gullibility, thus I'm a disbeliever in Poe's Law as it relates to woo generally.<BR/><BR/>Although the crap peddled by Life Technology does make me wonder. I'd forgotten about the tampon applicator aka the Tesla Shield.<BR/><BR/><I>...not without designing a product that causes actual harm.</I><BR/><BR/>I think that there's still stuff that can be milked here without designing something that is actually harmful. After all, wasn't the Ouidja Board invented as a joke? It can be that simple.Dikkiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-6152575558814875892008-08-13T09:32:00.000+10:002008-08-13T09:32:00.000+10:00Greg, However, there are various state bodies an...Greg, <BR/><BR/><I> However, there are various state bodies and, under the Act, individuals can make claims too.</I><BR/><BR/>You're quite right, although doing it alone without the assistance of a body like the ACCC would be a fair ask. The onus of proof is usually on the plaintiff in a civil action under the act.<BR/><BR/>State consumer affairs bodies are useful too, although I'm not sure how effective they are.<BR/><BR/><I>I, for one, would like to see a disgruntled woo consumer going to court to test a failed psychic prediction/healing pill/fortune spell etc. </I><BR/><BR/>I for another.<BR/><BR/><I>Perhaps I'm just not getting it. Maybe woo consumer never, ever take their suppliers to court because they Want To Believe, even if it means getting ripped off!</I><BR/><BR/>I think also that there would be some terrible embarrassment in resorting to this type of action. Remember, one of the reasons that con artists don't get reported is still one of people being embarrassed by their own gullibility.Dikkiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-55866725427857155422008-08-13T02:19:00.000+10:002008-08-13T02:19:00.000+10:00It's a nice idea, but I have a sneaking suspicion ...It's a nice idea, but I have a sneaking suspicion that you're going to run into the woo equivalent of Poe's Law. I consider myself pretty imaginative, and I've believed a lot of strange stuff in the past, but there is no way I could come up with anything more obviously ridiculous than most of the crap sold by <A HREF="http://www.lifetechnology.org/" REL="nofollow">Life Technology</A> - at least, not without designing a product that causes actual harm.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-61885561787346156192008-08-12T17:38:00.000+10:002008-08-12T17:38:00.000+10:00It's true that the ACCC may be reluctant to pursue...It's true that the ACCC may be reluctant to pursue such claims. However, there are various state bodies and, under the Act, individuals can make claims too.<BR/><BR/>I, for one, would like to see a disgruntled woo consumer going to court to test a failed psychic prediction/healing pill/fortune spell etc. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps I'm just not getting it. Maybe woo consumer never, ever take their suppliers to court because they Want To Believe, even if it means getting ripped off!Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07749796777534219331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-37406181588722460702008-08-12T17:07:00.000+10:002008-08-12T17:07:00.000+10:00Greg, that is indeed good news.As you know, I supp...Greg, that is indeed good news.<BR/><BR/>As you know, I support any initiative designed to protect consumers, even if those consuming the good or service in question are of questionable mental competence.<BR/><BR/>And the UK is going through a sensational skeptical renaissance which I strongly applaud. Witness the UK media’s current attention on homeopathy and acupuncture: It’s something that our media could learn from here.<BR/><BR/>The interesting thing here is that even though there is this sound of crickets where evidence for these types of claims should be, our existing trade practices legislation can and should lead to prosecutions where woosters are concerned.<BR/><BR/>The cold, hard reality is that the ACCC are totally unwilling to act on woo claims. I recall once (not sure where I read this) that a spokesman for the ACCC reversed the burden of proof on to the complainant (unreasonable) and another spokesman in a different article who suggested that altie woo lay outside their jurisdiction and should have been referred to the Therapeutic Goods Administration instead.Dikkiihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07897381809885423712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7115935.post-69577123915019820462008-08-12T12:21:00.000+10:002008-08-12T12:21:00.000+10:00Sounds good, Dikki! I'd like to get on board.While...Sounds good, Dikki! I'd like to get on board.<BR/><BR/>While raising funds and tricking the gullible are all worthy goals, I think we should explicitly force the hand of government to apply the rigours of the Trade Practices Act to woo merchants. It's happened in the UK and has put the cat amongst the pigeons over there:<BR/><BR/>http://www.spiritualist.tv/news/mar08/new-law.html<BR/><BR/>We need something like that here, triggered by a product or claim so egregiously wooful that even the woo-buying public is clamouring for the protection afforded by a heavy-handed regulator.<BR/><BR/>I'm not sure what could be, but I'm prepared to give it some thought.Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07749796777534219331noreply@blogger.com