No Answers in Political Rhetoric

Holmes

In his 2015 book Nonsense, former Harvard research coordinator Jamie Holmes explained how to boost creativity through “the power of not knowing.”  At the same time, he inadvertently explained the rise of such political figures as Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Bernie Sanders.

As Holmes pointed out, humans do not like ambiguity.  We like answers, everything neatly explained in nice little boxes.  When that is not possible, we become creative.  We look for reasons.  In fact, ambiguity drives creativity.  Holmes cited multiple examples how the lack of one definitive solution led to multiple creative answers, including the telephone, better vehicles, easier ways to transfer money and so on.

However, politicians are expected to have plans, simple answers to complex problems.  If you want to end the influx of illegal immigrants – no matter that the numbers have fallen in recent years and associated problems are minimal – build a wall.  Simple answer, even though the cost would be astronomical and unfeasible.

Great wall of Mexico?

Too expensive? Mexico will pay for it, even though Mexico, as a sovereign country, may have alternative uses for its revenue.  The U.S. has no way to force any country, must less Mexico, to spend a dime.  In the past, if there’s something we wanted, we just slipped the country the money to cover costs anyway.

Want to solve inequity in the social system?  Just change the tax code.  No matter that’s been tried numerous times, creating the highly complex code no one understands.  Moreover, there’s no evidence that such gerrymandering will actually help resolve social ills, which are deeply ingrained and related to far more than income.

Climate Change?  Deny it.  Trust religion, the most simplistic of all attempts to resolve ambiguity.  Religion thrives by asserting “truths” as if anything a member of the clergy proclaims is actually gospel.  Don’t worry about death: “true believers” are rewarded.  Others are punished.  Who are “true believers?”  The ones we say are. 

Heaven?

Such thinking drives terrorists to kill opponents, because they will be “rewarded” in their imaginary Valhalla. 

Unfortunately, there are no clear cut answers to the ISIS threat.  There’s no obvious solution to Climate Change, to immigration or to the disappearance of fresh water, increased pollution, impact of chemicals on our lives and more.  The most creative and intelligent members of society will need to address those concerns.  Many are.  Ideas are being debated; proposals are being made.

You won’t hear them in political debates or rallies where politicians pander to the crowds’ desires for instant, complete answers.  The work is being done in the quiet laboratories and in the minds of unheralded people who recognize that the lack of a concrete answer opens the arena to creativity.

No answers here

Such solutions will require flexibility, experience, awareness of repercussions of what seems like an answer, ramifications of any decision and the willingness to change minds and accept the ambiguity of reality.

In the interim, we are all burdened by politicians who are spouting what in reality, as Holmes described in another context, is nonsense.

Worse, they attract hordes of followers demanding simple answers.

Long-time religious historian Bill Lazarus regularly writes about religion and religious history.  He also speaks at various religious organizations throughout Florida.  You can reach him at www.williamplazarus.net.  He is the author of the famed Unauthorized Biography of Nostradamus; The Last Testament of Simon Peter; The Gospel Truth: Where Did the Gospel Writers Get Their Information; Noel: The Lore and Tradition of Christmas Carols; and Dummies Guide to Comparative Religion.  His most recent book is Passover in Prison, which details abuse of Jewish inmates in American prisons.  His books are available on Amazon.com, Kindle, bookstores and via various publishers.  He can also be followed on Twitter.

You can enroll in his on-line class, Comparative Religion for Dummies, at http://www.udemy.com/comparative-religion-for-dummies/?promote=1

Biblical Exodus Account Confirmed?

Crossing the "Red Sea"

Several friends yesterday eagerly forwarded a story to me about Egyptian archaeologists finding the remains of an army at the bottom of the Red Sea.  They were all excited about the “proof” of the biblical account of an  Egyptian army being drowned while pursuing fleeing Hebrew slaves, an event that serves as the base of the Passover holiday and Judaism itself.

The story was actually first published in 2014 on the website World News Daily Report (WNDR):

Egypt's Antiquities Ministry announced this morning that a team of underwater archaeologists had discovered that remains of a large Egyptian army from the 14th century BC, at the bottom of the Gulf of Suez, 1.5 kilometers offshore from the modern city of Ras Gharib. The team was searching for the remains of ancient ships and artifacts related to Stone Age and Bronze Age trade in the Red Sea area, when they stumbled upon a gigantic mass of human bones darkened by age.

Faked image of dead Egyptians

The scientists lead by Professor Abdel Muhammad Gader and associated with Cairo University’s Faculty of Archaeology, have already recovered a total of more than 400 different skeletons, as well as hundreds of weapons and pieces of armor, also the remains of two war chariots, scattered over an area of approximately 200 square meters. They estimate that more than 5000 other bodies could be dispersed over a wider area, suggesting that an army of large size who have perished on the site.

Sounds plausible?  No, it isn’t, even though the professor and the school apparently exist.  For starters, WNDR only prints fake news.  Other recent stories from that source include: a tale about the capture of a giant prehistoric shark, the birth of a dinosaur from a fossilized egg and a recently discovered account of an eyewitness to a miracle performed by Jesus.

Moreover, the on-line site contains the disclaimer that “All news articles contained within worldnewsdailyreport.com are fiction, and presumably fake news. Any resemblance to the truth is purely coincidental, except for all references to politicians and/or celebrities, in which case they are based on real people, but still based almost entirely in fiction.”

The Red Sea story would have died without a whimper, but another website, Disclose.TV, picked up the fake report and recycled it last fall.  It’s now getting extra life on the internet.

Real archaeological dig in Israel

Such fallacious reports continue to bedevil religious folks because so many want the tales to be true.  They are thirsting for any evidence to support biblical accounts.  So far, very little has ever been found, none of which verify anything in a biblical account.

Just for example, this story had to be wrong simply because the supposed relics were located in the Red Sea.  The Bible says the Hebrews crossed the Sea of Reeds, a shallow body of water now incorporated into the Suez Canal.  Later translators simply made a mistake in naming.  In addition, there’s no evidence yet found which demonstrates any group of people lived in the Sinai Desert or that Canaan (now Israel) was ever invaded by an outside group.  Cultural artifacts there remain unchanged for thousands of years, according to real archaeological findings. 

Maybe someday, some evidence will turn up to support the beloved Moses-dominated saga, but to date, despite, extensive digging, nothing has.

The Bible is old, not accurate

The idea that the Bible may be inaccurate, of course, hasn’t filtered through the brains of the devout. That’s why stories like this continue to be published and circulated by gullible believers.

That won’t change anytime soon.  Willingness to swallow even the most-obvious lie remains the hallmark of faith.

Long-time religious historian Bill Lazarus regularly writes about religion and religious history.  He also speaks at various religious organizations throughout Florida.  You can reach him at www.williamplazarus.net.  He is the author of the famed Unauthorized Biography of Nostradamus; The Last Testament of Simon Peter; The Gospel Truth: Where Did the Gospel Writers Get Their Information; Noel: The Lore and Tradition of Christmas Carols; and Dummies Guide to Comparative Religion.  His most recent book is Passover in Prison, which details abuse of Jewish inmates in American prisons.  His books are available on Amazon.com, Kindle, bookstores and via various publishers.  He can also be followed on Twitter.

You can enroll in his on-line class, Comparative Religion for Dummies, at http://www.udemy.com/comparative-religion-for-dummies/?promote=1