When Experts... Aren't

I’m giving my opinion
And there’s got to be a way
To have people pay attention
To the things I want to say

I tried to be a scientist
But classes were too tough
But I took a course in marketing
That surely is enough

A course in methodology
Or others of that kind
Might have taught me the importance
Of proceeding double-blind

Or statistical analysis
And other science stuff
But I took a course in marketing—
That surely is enough.

I’ll talk about the benefits
Religious faith can bring—
It’s really not important
That I know a single thing

What the hell, it’s only blogging;
I can yammer off the cuff—
Hey, I took a course in marketing--
That’s got to be enough.

I’ll look at how I think, and then
Extrapolate from there—
An atheist must think like me;
If not, well… I don’t care.

So I posted my opinions
And the readers called my bluff!
But I took a course in marketing—
Why can’t that be enough?



The past day or so, I've been having my head explode. I blame Furious Purpose, whose post "What is it with Psychology Today?" introduced me to a couple of extraordinarily bad posts that ignorant (and, I suspect, stupid) bloggers had made about atheism. On the Psychology Today website, where no self-respecting magazine would allow such tripe to be associated with their name. (warning--read only if you like the idea of an ignorant fool lecturing others who know more than he does) The commentary at the site is wonderful--the readers are (mostly) far more knowledgeable about atheism and science than the blogger. Other nice commentary at Pharyngula, expectedly.