Friendly Atheist

First, here’s a quotation from a news story:

“We have control over things we didn’t have control over before. That’s the progress of science,” [John] Hagelin said.

The progress of science! Yes! Good, right?

What’s he talking about?

Meditation.

More specifically, meditating for a rise in the Dow Jones, fewer hurricanes, and better relations with North Korea.

I should also mention that there’s no explanation as to how any of this is scientific. Hagelin just says it is.

I’m not sure whether I should be upset with the morons who do the meditating or Reuters for considering this a worthy news story.

Through group transcendental meditation the [Invincible America Assembly]– which has 1,800 people meditating daily in Iowa since it was formed in July 2006 — releases harmonious waves which benefit all aspects of U.S. life, spokesman Bob Roth told Reuters.

Here are some more wonderfully idiotic in-context excerpts from the article:

Asked what it would take to achieve world peace, Hagelin said such a utopia would need 8,000 meditators.

The group takes credit for, among other things: the Dow Jones Industrial Average reaching a record high of 14,022 last week, unemployment rates falling to a six-year low at 4.5 percent, and North Korea shutting down its nuclear reactor.

Oh, and if you read on, there’s also a comparison between “transcendental meditation” and the invention of electricity.

At least we’ll now have something to look forward to– the group’s backtracking– when North Korea does develop nukes.

Ok. I said there’s no science in the Reuters article. But if you look at Invincible America’s press releases, they do mention some unnamed peer-reviewed research publications without citations. That’s a step up, yes? Look at this quotation, for example:

“Extensive research published in leading, peer-reviewed scientific journals documents reduced negative trends, including reduced crime and violence, and improved economic and social trends—when as few as the square root of one percent of a population practice Yogic Flying together in a group,” Dr. Hagelin said.

Ooh. There’s math in there, too. It must be true.

And look at this one:

“This is not wishful thinking,” Dr. Hagelin said. “This is hard science that has been field tested for over 50 years and documented through more than 600 studies conducted at over 250 independent universities and research institutes throughout the world.”

But there’s no link to the studies or a list of the universities.

By the way, the Invincible America Assembly exists because of a $12,000,000 grant from the Howard and Alice Settle Foundation for Invincible America.

Crazy eccentric rich people ruin everything…

I’m going to go cry now.

(Thanks to Kyle for the link)


[tags]atheist, atheism, John Hagelin, science, Dow Jones, hurricane, North Korea, Reuters, transcendental meditation, Invincible America Assembly, Bob Roth, Howard and Alice Settle Foundation for Invincible America[/tags]