Re: What can we learn from Pointy Parachutes?

[Guest guest]

,

But as usual you are 100% correct on this also, and I can't agree

with you more.

I do know one thing, I will be making a trip to CA in the near

future. I would like to meet up, so I can experience one of the

most " natural " highs that is possible. I've always wanted to hang

glide, but never had the chance. Tandem with me is just fine. When

we make it to the bottom, I'm sure Sharon will be standing there

with camera in hand, silently saying choice words under her breath.

lol.

KC

> Watching the " mold paradigm shift " reminds me of the shift in

> perception that occurred as Hang Glider technology developed.

>

> When flex wing Hang Gliders became popular, their performance was

so

> lacking that the public came to think of them as " Pointy

Parachutes "

> which required an act of brazen insanity to launch from a cliff,

and

> fervently hope the damn thing would start flying some time before

> before impacting the ground.

> After was taking pictures at EXACTLY 17,999 ft. Alt,

> (one ft less than the legal limit of FL 18) and Larry Tudor had

> exceeded 200 miles, many people still retained their initial

> perception of the characteristics of " Hang Glider Death Traps " .

> But things had definitely changed: http://users.ez2.net/skyfreak/

> I had just landed after a flight on a very hot day and was

hurriedly

> stripping off my down jacket, gloves and goggles before I survived

> Hang Gliding only to die of heat stroke, and someone walked out in

> the field and asked me " Where did YOU come from? I didn't see you

> here a moment ago "

> When I gestured in the direction of the mountain I had launched

> from, the response was " That's IMPOSSIBLE. You couldn't have come

> that far "

> Wow, here was a person in total denial of the evidence of his own

> eyes!

> I asked " Do you really think I just assembled this glider, put on

my

> harness, helmet and gear just so I could sneak out in this field

and

> sweat myself to death on a hot day? "

> " Well, you MUST HAVE! Because I know that there is no way you

could

> have flown that far! "

> This is incredible. Hard to believe, but there are many people

out

> there who cannot shift their preconceptions to fit reality without

a

> GREAT DEAL of evidence to surmount their fixed notions.

>

> And this is what we are seeing with the manner in which " Mold

> Awareness " is progressing.

> Attitudes are shifting, but not often by a convincing

demonstration

> of the evidence.

> It is literally taking sheer force of numbers to overwhelm the

> belief system of intransigent persons who have the epistemological

> inability to respond to such demonstrations of evidence.

> This inability to alter firmly fixed convictions should be taken

> into account when people manifest an inexplicable unwillingness to

> bring their belief systems into accordance with reality.

> When someone demonstrates that their knowledge is shaped by

> consensus rather than science, the presentation will only be

> compelling to them if it contains vast numbers and statistics.

> -