Two of my coworkers frequently mention shows like “Encounters” or “Ancient apocalypse” or whatever. I’m not the best at debating or forming arguments against these though I do feel strongly that bold claims require better evidence than a blurry photo and an eyewitness account. How do you all go about this?

Today I clumsily stumbled through conversation and said “I’ll need some evidence” and was hit with “there’s plenty of evidence in the episode ‘Lights over Fukushima’”. I didn’t have an answer because I haven’t watched it. I’m 99% sure that if I watch it it’s gonna be dramatized, designed to scare/freak you out a little and consist of eyewitness accounts and blurry photos set to eerie music. But I’m afraid I just sound like a haughty know-it-all if I do assert this before watching.

These are good people and I want to remain on good terms and not come across as a cynical asshole.

(Sorry if language is too formal or stilted. Not my native tongue)

  • DeadNinja@lemmy.world
    151·
    1 year ago

    “Stilted”?

    You sir, are one of those fucking amazing people who profusely apologize for not being a native English speaker and then blurt out 37 paragraphs of perfect English.

    You have nothing to be ashamed of - your English is better than a lot of them native speakers ! And always remember this :

    “You are speaking English because that is the only language you know; I am speaking English because that is the only language you know. We are not the same.”

    And as to your original question - if I ever ask them “what evidence did you see which proves X happens?”, I have almost always been hit with the reply, “Oh yeah? What proof do you have that says X does not happen???”. And then I tell them the anecdote of the Invisible Dragon by Carl Sagan. Look it up if this is new to you, and for a more formal treatment, check out Karl Popper’s theory of Falsifiability.

    I have personally converted at least one conspiracy theorist to being an Agnostic. So I know it works. Try them out, it’s fun.

    And I also am not a native English speaker to be honest :-)

    • SpaceAce@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOP
      3·
      1 year ago

      Haha thanks. I know I’m being silly, on a certain level, apologizing for my English but as an anxious person I’m being defensive up front. I still feel like I don’t sound like a native, an outsider, and I want people to know I’m not native if they pick up on my English being off.

      Thanks for the advice. Though reading all them comments I’m starting to lean towards letting them have their fun. I am not great at debating anyway and maybe questioning without confronting is best.