Flat Earth Movement Growing

[Tekania]

I've been involved with various online discussion engaging in flat-earth debunking for some time now.

This is still a small fringe movement. It is not growing at all. They get more press time and some of the larger players have started scraping money together to hold conventions.... but it is small. Their numbers are not increasing per capita to the growth of the population. The organization acts primarily to peddle young-earth-creationism, and it's materials are primarily targeted towards people who have a distrust of intellectualism, authority figures/government, the typically pulls from other conspiracy groups, truthers, birthers, etc. Their arguments portray a piss poor understanding of basic geometry and rely heavily on their target audience being both ignorant of basic mechanisms at work as well as having an unwillingness to learn about those mechanisms.

The average adherent simply parrots arguments they hear from threads or youtube videos while simultaneously calling themselves woke and a free thinker.

The larger channel operators that peddle flerfer BS are doing it for donations and in a few cases their donations make up their primary income. It amounts to a sort of fraud, much like snake-oil salesmen.

Additionally there is a large population of flerfers in the UK.

I had a sneaking suspicion they were connected to Creationists.

A lot of their "alternative narrative" bullshit stinks of the Intelligent Design movement from the early 2000s.

If y'all blinked and missed that bullshit, here's a documentary about it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HZzGXnYL5I

TL;DW The Intelligent Design movement was a front group facading a "secular" Creationist movement.

All of these movements, small as they are, threaten to legitimize lies. I don't like them either way, small or large.

Yeah, it's sort of obvious really. How do you have a natural flat-earth encased in a firmament... the entire thing is built around literal genesis interpretations.

Also, in case anyone is thinking about getting into discussions with flat-earthers... I suggest you watch this first. It sums up what your discussions will be like with them. Be prepared to deal with some really stupid shit, and I suggest you put on some forehead protecting ovenmits before starting.

If anyone one wants to laugh at flat-earthers, I suggest watching stuff from Tau Ceti Alpha as he has compiled some juicier tidbits from flat-earth channel videos into a series of videos.

[Albrenia]

Speaking of weird, scientifically-challenged Youtube channels, I've not looked in on Spirit Science for a while. I wonder if they're still of the opinion that Earth was settled by Martians and Space Jews (not joking, sadly).

[-Ocelot-]

Speaking of weird, scientifically-challenged Youtube channels, I've not looked in on Spirit Science for a while. I wonder if they're still of the opinion that Earth was settled by Martians and Space Jews (not joking, sadly).

Stumbled upon Spirit Science about a year ago or so. It's a very interesting channel if you are into paranormal and metaphysical topics, just don't take it's "teachings" and "facts" seriously.

[Katganistan]

That's absolutely not what he said; he said it's the same small number over time, but now with the Internet connecting us, all the isolated loonies can find each other and see each other's existence as proof they're not loonie, and gather together to preach their lunacy.

That is exactly what Neil deGrasse Tyson posits.


How? By expecting that all tenth graders will be able to do and understand the same math problems, coast to coast, and that all tenth graders will be able to write an essay and understand that authors all have biases....

What? Too political that someone who moves from the Wisconsin Dells to Newark, Deleware will have the same skills as the students in their new school?

The common core has faults, but 'political' is not one of them.

People were doing fine with that before the centralized (and unconstitutional) common core system. Education is now too controlled by academic regressive leftism.

No, it really wasn't.

You had and have still, in places where the school board opted out, texts that preach creationism and which have 'history' that's blind to the fact that Americans committed genocide against the Native Americans and fucked them over pretty badly.

But hey, let people be ignorant flat-earth believing 14th century-is-more-advanced-in-science-disbelieving racists fucks, because being educated is 'academic regressive leftism'.

Why are some people this stupid, it shouldn't be possible to be this stupid.

See the post above yours, and others.

Are you saying that McCain "nearly won"? By American standards, Obama beat him in a landslide.

Let me rephrase that.

"A near-majority of Americans voted for McCain and Palin in 2008. Which under the circumstances and in light of the evidence was an insanely idiotic thing to do."

A majority of Americans voted in 2016 for the other candidate and got this shitshow instead.

This is what happens when people abandon science.

I don't think people ever really completely adopted it, at least in the US.

Everyone I know has. And that's not just in my school. The people I went to school and university do -- even the ones who are religious recognize the reality of science. My parents' understands and believes in science. My grandparents' generation did too.

This fucking bullshit of "alternative narratives" is getting really fucking old.

This isn't a religion. This is bold faced lies being passed as scientific fact.

They're not an "alternative narrative", they're LIES. LIES. LIES.

then let the free market of ideas settle it. personally i am not into forcing people into trying to think different

And when these morons get into office?

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

Let me rephrase that.

"A near-majority of Americans voted for McCain and Palin in 2008. Which under the circumstances and in light of the evidence was an insanely idiotic thing to do."

A majority of Americans voted in 2016 for the other candidate and got this shitshow instead.

For context, the subject was common core, and the claim that America was "doing fine" before it was around. (Ie. 2008 and earlier.)

If "common core" was better enforced, could they have educated the districts that voted Trump well enough to prevent that?

[Katganistan]

A majority of Americans voted in 2016 for the other candidate and got this shitshow instead.

For context, the subject was common core, and the claim that America was "doing fine" before it was around. (Ie. 2008 and earlier.)

If "common core" was better enforced, could they have educated the districts that voted Trump well enough to prevent that?

Common core came in in 2009, and states were allowed to opt out at the cost of turning away federal funding.

I don't know how you think it could have been 'enforced'. Do you envision sending the national guard to make state governments accept it at gunpoint?

[MeeNMann]

For context, the subject was common core, and the claim that America was "doing fine" before it was around. (Ie. 2008 and earlier.)

If "common core" was better enforced, could they have educated the districts that voted Trump well enough to prevent that?

Common core came in in 2009, and states were allowed to opt out at the cost of turning away federal funding.

I don't know how you think it could have been 'enforced'. Do you envision sending the national guard to make state governments accept it at gunpoint?

Taking away federal funding is too close to forcing them to submit.

[LimaUniformNovemberAlpha]

For context, the subject was common core, and the claim that America was "doing fine" before it was around. (Ie. 2008 and earlier.)

If "common core" was better enforced, could they have educated the districts that voted Trump well enough to prevent that?

Common core came in in 2009, and states were allowed to opt out at the cost of turning away federal funding.

I don't know how you think it could have been 'enforced'. Do you envision sending the national guard to make state governments accept it at gunpoint?

I was thinking more of sending inspectors to make sure the schools that claimed to accept it actually did.

I don't know about America, but here in Canada there is a huge difference between what schools say they do and what they actually do.

[Maineiacs]

Common core came in in 2009, and states were allowed to opt out at the cost of turning away federal funding.

I don't know how you think it could have been 'enforced'. Do you envision sending the national guard to make state governments accept it at gunpoint?

I was thinking more of sending inspectors to make sure the schools that claimed to accept it actually did.

I don't know about America, but here in Canada there is a huge difference between what schools say they do and what they actually do.

Same here. In fact, I wouldn't be at all surprised to find that it was actually more so here in the States.

[Tekania]

But hey, let people be ignorant flat-earth believing 14th century-is-more-advanced-in-science-disbelieving racists fucks, because being educated is 'academic regressive leftism'.

This is completely incorrect. You would need to ho back to pre-4th century BC to find sizable numbers of flat-earth believers. There were sizeably geocentrists still in the 14th century... but flat-earth had been dead for awhile by that point. It's a fairly "recent" (in the last century or so) myth that Pre-Columbus was populated by lots of Flat-Earthers.... Columbus and his contemporaries all already knew the Earth was spherical.... there was contention between heliocentrism and geocentrism and some contention on the size of the Earth... which is mostly what Columbus was on about, he actually thought the prevailing opinion of the Earth's size was wrong (too large)... oddly enough Columbus was wrong about that and his contemporaries were right. It's just that people were not expecting him to run into a large land mass inbetween Europe and the East-Indies.

[Trumptonium]

If the Earth was round, why wouldn't I end up in Japan by the end of the afternoon if I hover in the air?

Checkmate atheists.

[Camicon]

If the Earth was round, why wouldn't I end up in Japan by the end of the afternoon if I hover in the air?

Checkmate atheists.

Have you tried?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRWbIoIR04c

[Proctopeo]

If the Earth was round, why wouldn't I end up in Japan by the end of the afternoon if I hover in the air?

Checkmate atheists.

It only doesn't work because we haven't fully activated our spirit grid to become physical gods.

[The Rich Port]

And when these morons get into office?

Yeah, if we could please not let that happen, that would be great.

This is somewhat relevant actually, Don McLeroy was both an Intelligent Design proponent and he was trying to get an Intelligent Design textbook adopted into the curriculum of the Texas Board of Education, which would have affected sales of the book nationwide positively.

http://www.cc.com/video-clips/14wyxm/th ... on-mcleroy

[The Knockout Gun Gals]

Its a hologram didn't you know?

There is no moon. Only Satan.

Obviously those astronauts are evil cultists.

/sarcasm.

[San Lumen]

There is no moon. Only Satan.

Obviously those astronauts are evil cultists.

/sarcasm.

No their actors didn't you know? They are in front of a green screen or in pool.

[The Knockout Gun Gals]

Obviously those astronauts are evil cultists.

/sarcasm.

No their actors didn't you know? They are in front of a green screen or in pool.

Green screen, I can accept that. But why pool?

[Holt]

People who think the earth is flat should be sent to the space!

[San Lumen]

No their actors didn't you know? They are in front of a green screen or in pool.

Green screen, I can accept that. But why pool?

because astronauts train underwater.

[Tekania]

People who think the earth is flat should be sent to the space!

I've been dealing with these people. If you were to put these people in a rocket, launch it into orbit, shove them out the airlock without a space suit on, the very last words they would mouth while dying in the near vacuum of earth orbit would be "It's so fake!!!"

[Holt]

People who think the earth is flat should be sent to the space!

I've been dealing with these people. If you were to put these people in a rocket, launch it into orbit, shove them out the airlock without a space suit on, the very last words they would mouth while dying in the near vacuum of earth orbit would be "It's so fake!!!"

Of course they should be sent to space with a space suit on!

[San Lumen]

I've been dealing with these people. If you were to put these people in a rocket, launch it into orbit, shove them out the airlock without a space suit on, the very last words they would mouth while dying in the near vacuum of earth orbit would be "It's so fake!!!"

Of course they should be sent to space with a space suit on!

and then they will say its all hologram or staged somehow.

[Holt]

Of course they should be sent to space with a space suit on!

and then they will say its all hologram or staged somehow.

Sadly yes

[Democratic Exodian Territories]

The Earth is round, that’s basic logic.

What’s also logic is how they’re putting chemicals in the water to turn the frickin’ frogs gay.

(Yes, it’s a shitpost and an Alex Jones meme, but still, a certain type of pesticide has proven to devastate ecosystems by chemically castrating male frogs.)

[San Lumen]

We need to educate such people.

The problem is you can';t. They think they are right and everyone else is deluded by some mass conspiracy, museums are places where people are fed lies and propaganda and astronauts are actors.