Why I am not a Mormon

[_GoodK]

There was no quick judging going on here.

Seems like it. Considering Bishop Peterson never even contacted me, and your PM to me was to inform me that you had already sent the post to my Dad (which I never did understand why you would say that you did, unless you thought better of it or were just trying to scare me).

[_GoodK]

Why, incidentally, is the matter of the two Unspeakably Horrible GoodK Epistles suddenly boiling up again? I had thought it had simmered down, but now it seems to be back.

I don't know. I have only seven minutes left for this place today.

Sorry to disappoint, but I simply won't be able to respond to all attacks and Scratchoscopies as much as some here would like

Ironically, Scratch hasn't shown up once on this thread. I hope he is off vacationing somewhere nice, not thinking about you or this place.

[_guy sajer]

And out of curiosity, what net good did you expect to gain from this course of action, and in hindsight, what net good did you gain?

I gained nothing, and I sought to gain nothing.

Clearly you thought to gain something not you personally, perhaps, but you clearly anticipated some kind of outcome of your action.

Or did you not consider the possible outcome? Perhaps you were driven by some categorical imperative to meddle?

If you did not anticipate some kind of outcome of your action, how does this qualify as a prudent decision? Especially given that you've agreed with my general rule that one should meddle only if one reasonably anticipates a positive outcome as a result.

So what positive outcome did you anticipate?

How do the resulting events square with your expectations?

Was the gain created by your action enough to compensate for the rift it has created, or worsened, between goodk and his father? (Your action may not be the sole cause--goodk bears responsibility too, as does his father--but it was an important cause nonetheless.)

[_rcrocket]

Quit mocking him and beating him up.

I am the one who first contacted GoodK's father. I am the one who brought the matter to Dr. Peterson's attention.

Mock me, you pompous fool.

[_guy sajer]

Quit mocking him and beating him up.

I am the one who first contacted GoodK's father. I am the one who brought the matter to Dr. Peterson's attention.

Mock me, you pompous fool.

Is this a general invitation, or are you addressing someone in particular?

The action was as poorly conceived in your mind as it was in Dr. P's.

[_Daniel Peterson]

Ok, I'm game. Show me a post you made where you do indicate an open-mindedness to, at least consider, that you might not have made the most prudent decision, or where you concede the reasonableness of the contrary point of view, even if you don't agree with it.

My thoughts occur in my mind, not necessarily on this board.

With thousands upon thousands of posts to your name, Dan, we have more than enough data points to draw informed inferences about your (on-line) character. There is precious little to suggest there that critical self reflection is one of your strong suites.

My thoughts occur in my mind. Some of my conclusions are posted to this board once in a while.

Nor is it one of your character traits to give ground in arguments or grant concessions to your debating opponents.

I tend to think I'm right.

If, by contrast, you tend to think that you're wrong, we can agree on that.

I think this falls comfortably within the boundaries of the definition of obstinacy as defined here: "stubbornness: resolute adherence to your own ideas or desires"

I think, rather, that you're using obstinate in the sense defined by Ambrose Bierce: "OBSTINATE, adj. Inaccessible to the truth as it is manifest in the splendor and stress of our advocacy."

I'm confident in my assessment, based on the evidence at hand. Give me more evidence, and I'm happy to reassess.

I'm not even slightly interested in contesting the question with you of whether I have an internal mental life and engage in ethical reflection.

[_rcrocket]

Quit mocking him and beating him up.

I am the one who first contacted GoodK's father. I am the one who brought the matter to Dr. Peterson's attention.

Mock me, you pompous fool.

Is this a general invitation, or are you addressing someone in particular?

The action was as poorly conceived in your mind as it was in Dr. P's.

Unfortunately, not as poorly conceived as your position.

[_Trevor]

Ok, I'm game. Show me a post you made where you do indicate an open-mindedness to, at least consider, that you might not have made the most prudent decision, or where you concede the reasonableness of the contrary point of view, even if you don't agree with it.

When Daniel sent me a message through this board about this issue (Scratch was discussing it in a thread), I do recall that the message suggested some degree of reflection on his part regarding the decision to send the email. I do believe he at least reflected on what to do. How much, I do not know.

[_Daniel Peterson]

Clearly you thought to gain something not you personally, perhaps, but you clearly anticipated some kind of outcome of your action.

Or did you not consider the possible outcome?

I did.

Perhaps you were driven by some categorical imperative to meddle?

I was not.

If you did not anticipate some kind of outcome of your action, how does this qualify as a prudent decision?

I did anticipate an outcome, so your question is moot.

So what positive outcome did you anticipate?

I anticipated a modest enhancement of the father's understanding of where is son was coming from and what his son was thinking.

I tend to regard knowledge as a good thing.

How do the resulting events square with your expectations?

Quite well, although I had not anticipated the hysterical and over-the-top indignation that would take possession of some of the denizens of this board, and certainly never anticipated that it would lead, for example, to obscene posting about my wife.

Was the gain created by your action enough to compensate for the rift it has created, or worsened, between goodk and his father?

The relationship between GoodK and his father seems to have continued pretty much unchanged, so far as I can tell.

Incidentally, I simply sent a link to GoodK's father, who then decided, on his own initiative, to raise the issue with GoodK.

[_Daniel Peterson]

Ironically, Scratch hasn't shown up once on this thread. I hope he is off vacationing somewhere nice, not thinking about you or this place.

He may be hiding in the bushes outside my house.