Eliezer_Yudkowsky comments on The Santa deception: how did it affect you? - Less Wrong

21 Post author: Desrtopa 20 December 2010 10:27PM

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Comment author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 21 December 2010 01:53:41AM 12 points [-]

It would be valuable training in the fact that everyone else in the world is crazy.

Comment author: David_Gerard 21 December 2010 12:35:08PM *  6 points [-]

I'm still wondering how to deal with the possibility of my daughter assuming something is just a fun play-along story (Tooth Fairy, Father Christmas, Jesus, the Liberal Democrats) and then encountering a playmate who doesn't know it's a story. The fallout should be interesting, at least. I am torn as to how to tell her when it's rude to take away people's erroneous beliefs.

Edit: Oh Dawkins, she's likely to go to the local Church of England primary school. (My girlfriend is an active member of said church.) [All the other local primaries are Catholic, dismal failures or both.] This will be tons of fun for everyone, I'm sure (he said with trepidation). The vicar could out-argue a six year old; I'm really not sure about many of the church members, however.

Comment author: TobyBartels 30 December 2010 06:30:44AM *  0 points [-]

The vicar could out-argue a six year old

I've read this twice now (the bold ‘Edit’ made me check again), and each time I first read it as a claim that the vicar is a good debater. (Man, he could out-argue a six-year-old!) Then I think again.

Comment author: David_Gerard 31 December 2010 10:53:27AM *  -1 points [-]

:-) It was a statement about the other members of the church (who I suspect couldn't), not about the vicar (who is smart and knowledgeable and an excellent fellow).

Comment author: listic 26 December 2010 05:27:33PM *  0 points [-]

Are you saying that it's hard to find a secular school in England? (shock)

I was born in Soviet Russia and kind of used to the opposite

Comment author: David_Gerard 26 December 2010 08:43:20PM -1 points [-]

Oh no, there's always a secular school around. It's usually unbelievably terrible, at least in poor areas like this.