Responding to Dameon692002 - Bested at Debate?

[Time4RationalTalk]

Of course, you realize that Dameon has taken to following you around and posting false assertions about your person and your arguments?  This is one of the reasons I was trying to talk you out of this line of action. You are dealing with a person who admits to personality disorders and is clearly disturbed. What is to be gained by it?

[nascentatheist]

@Time4RationalTalk - Deluded and disturbed. Yes, I know, which is why I am taking the tactic that you and Chris have taken and will not deal with his idiocies in comment areas. But yes, he'll do those things. He's an attention whore who thinks he has a "ministry," a credential, and wants to build a following. Naturally, he's going to spend a lot of time whimpering and whining and lying. The tactic is not a surprise.

[Time4RationalTalk]

@nascentatheist My view is that it's best to ignore these people. He's not going to convince anyone who doesn't already buy in to his nonsense. You, on the other hand, will never convince him that he's wrong. I just read a series of comments by him and it's clear that he's becoming obsessed with you. I'd wonder if he actually believes the things he keeps repeating, over and over, again, if it wasn't for his obvious personality issues; but whether he does or not, what is that to you?

[Time4RationalTalk]

@nascentatheist I agree with you on every point and I'm offended, too, at the posturing of fake educational credentials. Is that good cause to keep hammering at an individual? He seems to believe he's legit. I think it's clear that a person who gets a "credential" of that sort and who actually *admits* that he did so to gain credibility and *not* because he wanted to get an education exposes himself and that mill so obviously - and yet, doesn't get that that's what he did - is delusional.

[nascentatheist]

@Time4RationalTalk - Yeah, the fake degree and his attitude toward it is another example of a detachment from reality and his need for attention and legitimacy. As you reminded me to point out, the point to getting a credential of that or any sort is to get an education, NOT to presume to be credible to a potential audience. That's before we get into the fact that this "degree" requires less work than a SINGLE COURSE at the college freshman level.

[Time4RationalTalk]

Yes, his arguments are bad. His arguments are fallacious. His arguments either avoid the issue or skew the facts. There's nothing unusual about that. But you really hit the nail on the head when you talk about the time factor. Consider:

Dameon stated that he receives aid. I seem to recall some comment about Social Security, so he's on some form of disability.

He's claimed diagnoses with respect to personality disorders.

[Time4RationalTalk]

Okay. We can't ignore that. We also can't ignore that it's a diploma mill "degree" and that he's made many factual errors and perpetuates logical fallacy. But let's look at another perspective.

What, exactly, do we hope to gain by arguing these things on YouTube? You're dealing with one who has a small viewership, will certainly always have a small viewership, and who almost certainly won't convince anyone who doesn't already agree with either the premise of his argument or his claims.

[CAFoster58]

Good job. Just saw the "rebuttal" by Dameon692002 and it's just, well, bad - same fallacious argumentation, repeated claims, assertions, and wishful thinking, along with the same kinds of point-evasion, red herring argumentation, and assumption without good cause. Planning a response?

[nascentatheist]

@CAFoster58 - Damn! No kidding. A video from Xtranormal that starts of promoting a "ministry" and reading off a URL has GOT to be completely, thoroughly...uh, boring. But, yeah, he just put to video the same basic arguments, such as they were, that he made in the comments area, including some misrepresentations of what I said and the position I've taken. I do enjoy watching religionists essentially argue, "it's possible, so I believe it." It's not like they REALLY have evidence.

[CAFoster58]

@nascentatheist You're a better man than I am, at least at this sort of thing. I don't have your patience for this kind of nonsense. 

[nascentatheist]

@CAFoster58 - Well, that's part of the problem, of course. These religious phonies have all kinds of time and those of us who actually went out and got a real education and have real jobs tend to lack that kind of time. This troll is one of those kinds. He's trying to promote a "ministry." I especially enjoy hearing that he's the "director" of a "ministry" that's just him, but since it's all he does, he can try to monopolize comment areas and put out lots of videos.

[nascentatheist]

@CAFoster58 - As I already indicated, this is the kind of troll who figures that getting the last word means "winning" the "debate." And it's not so much about "winning" in any case, but about putting up things he can show a potential set of believers so that he can fleece them. "See what great works I am doing? Click here to donate..." It's coming. You watch. And like most YouTube trolls, he'd never actually get into a real debate. YouTube is good for trolls like this.

[nascentatheist]

@CAFoster58 - Given that it's normal for a religionist like this to take a shotgun approach and spew a whole lot of sound bites, it may take a few videos to refute each of the issues, but that's how these pseudo-intellectuals work.

I have to say that, while I've run into a lot of these religionists who argue all of these different areas (history, science) as if they were experts, but I've only occasionally run into one who uses the fake degree and title as if it backs him up.

It'll be fun.

[Time4RationalTalk]

As you know, I tend to be one of those who wonders why you spend so much time arguing this way on YouTube. On the other hand, it was clear to me, as a member of the audience when this "debate" was going on, that you were dealing with a person that could not tell us "what is right" about his position, so he had to take the personal shots. He has neither your education, understanding, or experience, so he had to marginalize those things. That was obvious. It was sad, too.