From: george knysh
Message: 59902
Date: 2008-08-29
--- On Fri, 8/29/08, tgpedersen <tgpedersen@...> wrote:
--- In cybalist@... s.com, "indravayu" <sonno3@...> wrote:
>
> > Yes, because, Chris' attempts notwithstanding, their names are not
> > Germanic.
>
>
> I will give Torsten this - he has the amazing ability to compose fact-
> free responses while simultaneously having his head buried in the
> sand - no small feat, I assure you!
And the facts in this posting are? Or have you found a sandworm?
Torsten
****GK: Torsten's response reminds me of a famous scene in "The Maltese Falcon", where Joel Cairo (played by Peter Lorre) answers the Lieutenant's request to "just give us the facts" with a "duuh... facts? What facts?" and then quickly opts for the story invented by Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart)as a convenient slip-out, in line with his current situation. Torsten is not a man of science but an ideologist,who will not accept any facts as facts which do not support his ideological prejudices, arrived at and sustained in complete independence of accepted scientific practice. He is, for instance, totally convinced that Snorri Sturluson has the "truth" with respect to the prehistory of the Germanic lands, and is only interested in finding evidence in science which supports this prejudice. Where this evidence, as is usually the case, does not support Snorri, our Torsten either rejects it or ignores it, or is prepared to embark on endless twistarounds with red
herrings galore. Four of his favourite techniques are :(1)the reversal of responsibility: i.e. he makes an unproved assertion and then expects you to disprove it; (2) the need for "perfect evidence" to dislodge his ideological committments (BTW there is never that in human affairs); (3) the side issue escape hatch; (4) the "what hat?" approach in debates. [Story: one man accused another of taking his hat. The other denied it. The first man asks: "did we not travel together?" Answer: "yes we did". Question: "did I not have a hat on?" Answer: "yes you did" Question: "did you not ask me to let you wear it?" answer: "yes I did." Question: "did I not pass the hat over to you?" Answer: "what hat?" Question: "did we not travel together?" etc...] Anybody who becomes involved in discussions with him should be aware of these limitations. Otherwise he is a nice enough fellow, with occasional worthwhile contributions.But I think I'm done with him.****