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John_Maxwell_IV comments on Son of Shit Rationalists Say - Less Wrong Discussion
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I tend to think that making up my own theories is just as good a use of time as reading the theories of others if the theories of others aren't based on empirical evidence or rigorous arguments.
For example, I consider making up my own theory of status an equally good or better use of time compared with reading about Max Weber's theory of status.
One should do both, ideally. And of course Freud's theories are based on tons of empirical evidence. Weber's likely is too. These people had senses and brains.
So did Gurdjieff, Crowley, Korzybski, Ayn Rand, Tim Leary, Bill W., Ron Hubbard, Inayat Khan, James Dobson, Zig Ziglar, Anton LaVey, and the Dalai Lama.
Out of all the possible theories in theory-space, or even all those that have been proposed by some famous dude you've heard of, why single out Freudianism for special attention?
It's become a fundamental part of our culture, unlike those others. Everyone's culture, it's not like Christianity. It's like fish in water at this point. The evidence suggests he's done something right -- we're not privileging the hypothesis here. Western civilization as a whole has spoken, people of all intelligences and creeds. Well, except the devout religious people, but they're close-minded. LessWrong would agree.
I would argue our culture is in the process of rejecting Freudianism. Seriously, you have to allow more than a century for the culture to make these kinds of judgements. I mean, I could make the same argument in favor of modern art.
This sounds almost like a claim of literary relevance, akin to that of Shakespeare, rather than scientific significance.