"A Typical Male…. AND THAT’S A FACT!

Posted on October 15th, 2006.

Greetings, just got back from the Cornwall UFO Research Groups 10th Annual Conference, and must first say a big WELL DONE to Dave Gilliham and his team. Now whilst the efforts of this group are worthy of a blog in and of itself, I feel moved to write about one specific incident and hopefully gather some comment from those more well versed in the issue at hand.

At the aforementioned conference I was presenting a session on “Rational Mysticism” and was really hoping to entertain the audience with some thoughts about the nature of reality and the way that beliefs influence perception… I knew that for this audience in particular it might seem that I was challenging some of their perceptions and beliefs… I also knew that one or two people would probably misunderstand the ‘message’ and ’switch off’… hence choosing to hear what they thought I was saying rather than what I was saying… (a risk which all public speakers take).

At the end of the talk I did receive the usual range of comments - most positive, some neutral, some ’so what’s?’. One lady in particular, who had been sitting near the front during my talk leaned across a group who were talking to me and commented…

“You know he’s just like all men… he’s got a brain and a penis and not enough blood to keep them working together!”

UMMMM - now was I to read this as an insult?

Or was it some witty comment about the value or nature of my talk…

I could have let it lie, but ego being what it is, I decided to challenge, or at least ask for clarification. I went and sat next to my critic and asked here what she meant her comment.

She shuffled a little and finding it difficult to look me in the eye, went on to explain that it was “A SCIENTIFIC FACT!” A fact which she went on to tell me was backed up by her personal experience…

I asked her to reflect on the idea that I might find the comment offensive, especially considering the public nature of her considered pronouncement… she intimated that she felt it wasn’t offensive as it was ’scientifically proven’ and ‘besides, women are the subject of more offensive comments?”…

“From me?” I asked…

She paused and looked away…

I decided to press on…

“Going back to my talk for a moment, are you willing to accept that our experiences shape our beliefs and that our beliefs influence the way we see the world?”

The silent response and sideways look from my detractor encouraged me to continue…

“And that one of the key sets of processes we as people use to make sense of the external world is to internally… DELETE some sensory information which thus causes us to GENERALISE about the patterns we see ‘out there’ in the world which all goes to DISTORT reality by shaping it in a way that can be personally understood…”

“WELL EVERYONE knows that….”

“EVERYONE?” - deliberately questionning the generalisation…. “Just like ALL men can’t think and use their penis at the same time…”

She shifted in her chair…

“I wonder if your perception of ‘all men’ actually influenced your ‘perception of me’ and hence your perception of what I was saying?”

She took the point…

“And as the theme of my talk was that we respond to personal realities isn’t it true that your comment was motivated by your beliefs about men… AND maybe in recognising that you have to consider what it could mean to all of your most fundamental beliefs…”

Now I’m not into point scoring, but I think I made the point as she immediately went on to explain that she worked with local councillors who were ‘MEN!’ and they did not show the capacity to be able to think about things in the same way she did… They were not open to their own biases and prejudices. I know I could have said something about kettles and pot calling, but let that slide, and I am glad I did for her next train of thought was really worth the wait…

She went on to talk about how people rarely listened, and that she had been in a discussion with a group of people recently who had been keen to raise money for cancer research. She apparently questioned thier motives and when the replied that they were motivated to help research into the causes and cures for cancer she apparently told them that that was a waste of time as “WE KNOW THAT CANCER IS AN STD” (sexually transmitted disease)….

Somewhat taken aback I started to say “Who say’s”; “Where does it say this….?”; “Give me the references…?”

Her replies were “Scientists”; “In the Lancet”; “NO!!! - well I can’t tell you exactly, but it’s all there…”

Not wanting to let this drop I commented that both my parents had died of cancer and suggested that she might be implying that they were sexually promiscuous…

The conversation continued, and to save space and time, I was informed that the Government were planning ‘mass inoculation’ of ‘10 year old girls’ in order to stop the spread of cancer!

I asked how she knew this and to point me in the direction of a reference, she replied that ‘its all in the news”…

She then went on to say that whilst innoculation against TB and Polio and such like was ‘good’ this kind of innoculation, i.e. cancer protection for girls, was not good as all it meant was that ‘men could do what they wanted with their penises, just like they were able to do when they invented The Pill, which was for their benefit so they could stick it where they wanted’.

What is the most disturbing thing about this whole exchange was that not only was this lady doing exactly what I was saying in my talk - i.e. repsonding emotionally and selectively to information because of preconcpetions whilst not being able or willing to substantiate her claims - but that she sais she was “A SENIOR MEMBER of THE ROYAL SOCIETY for the PROMOTION of HEALTH”

Now I am willing to accept that I have not fully researched the causes of cancer but at the moment I am unwilling to accept a single ‘causal’ factor for the disease; nor am I open to the chauvinistic interpretations of a single person.

Clearly the Rational Mystic in me wants more information…. but is also concerned about the extreme, single minded and generalised beliefs being espoused by someone clearly in a position to influence minds and perhaps policy!