[Max_Almond]

Or looking at a person's name.

[Pete Svarrior]

Second request for both of you to stay on topic. This isn't hard. Take your discussion to the appropriate board.

[Max_Almond]

As you can see, I brought it back on topic.

But, to assuage, I shall respond to off-topic posts no more.

[Tarte aux pommes]

I am curious about the political orientation of the flat earth community. Baby has made his statement about socialism, but your Rowbotham guru made up his theory in a socialist commune and was active in the community. Charles Darwin, do you have the statistic about political spectrum or something like that? It's always interesting to analyze the data about a community. Especially when a vocal minority try to make their own narrative about the whole group.

[Pete Svarrior]

I am curious about the political orientation of the flat earth community.

Then start a thread about it.

[Max_Almond]

From that same poll:



The only other stat that stood out for me was that younger people were most likely to doubt the sphericity of the Earth:



Full results here: https://today.yougov.com/topics/philosophy/articles-reports/2018/04/02/most-flat-earthers-consider-themselves-religious

[Max_Almond]

I think in general we get smarter as we get older: and that's the way it should be.

But maybe young people are using social media and youtube more, which is how ideas like this seem to spread.

It may also be that more younger respondents were messing about with their answers, though I'm not sure I buy into that.

Hard to blame the education system. I mean, I'm sure it's far from perfect - but when was it ever so? Are people really less able to think critically or logically than they were in the past? Or are we just more aware and more exposed to our fellow humans' lack of intelligence and discernment?

All being well, those young uns will have learned a few things by the time they reach maturity - though they'll no doubt be replaced by the next generation. Ah well.

[Tontogary]

The data regarding younger people being more likely to doubt the globe earth could be attributed to a number of factors;

1, More impressionable. Younger people are easier to sway in a debate, not sure why, but i am sure some human behaviourists will be able to explain,
2, Less practical experience. Younger people are much less likely to have travelled extensively and experienced the wider world around us, and therefore have less personal experiences to draw upon.
3, more open to radical ideas. More willing to accept an off the wall suggestion.
4, Power distance. This is used to describe where a person defers to someone with more perceived authority or age. It is more prevalent is some cultures than others.
5, Internet. Young people are so much more likely to believe everything they read on the internet. It is very common to hear a younger person say “I saw on the internet......” older people tend to not rely upon the internet as the main source, and may also read books and other sources to make an opinion....

Just a few thoughts.....

[AATW]

Hard to blame the education system. I mean, I'm sure it's far from perfect - but when was it ever so? Are people really less able to think critically or logically than they were in the past? Or are we just more aware and more exposed to our fellow humans' lack of intelligence and discernment?

That is a really good question. My general feeling is people aren't taught to think critically or logically. I see this kind of argument a lot:
A: "Smoking is really bad for you"
B: "My granddad smoked 20 a day from the age of 14 and didn't die till he was 90!"

B, you're an idiot. That is not a counter-argument. Yes, it is possible to do something very bad for you and live to a ripe old age, that doesn't mean it is probable to do so or that A's assertion is wrong. The old mixing up of possible and probably is a logical error which annoys me a lot!

I'm interested at flat earthers who are not religious. I don't agree with Dither's interpretation of scripture at all, I don't believe it should be understood scientifically. But I understand that he has a basis for believing a flat earth and that believing that the earth is special and set apart which we are increasingly coming to realise that from a cosmology point of view, it really isn't.

But if you don't believe that then I'm struggling to understand the mindset which would lead someone to reject all of modern science and think that there is a massive worldwide conspiracy to pretend that the ISS exists and space travel is real etc. etc. If you're not religious then what reason would you have for thinking the earth is different to any other planet? Yes there is life here but in many other regards it is the same to other planets with days and seasons and poles and mountains and geologic activity. We happen to be in the right position relative to our sun that life could develop here but otherwise there is nothing special about the earth at all. If you're not religious then why would you think there is?

[Tontogary]

Just a thought about the education system and youngg people believing the earth is flat.

If, as was earlier theorised, the education system brainwashes young people to follow the teachings of the state, then if you follow some claims that the FE movement is gaining momentum, the education system is failing to do the job, as more young people question the globe earth thinking.

I personally dont think this is the case, and without a comparative study it is very hard to understand if this is a new trend, or relatively it is nothing new.....

It would be very interesting to see similar polls for different places around the world.
I strongly suspect the Flat earth popularity is localised to North America.