The Street Epistemology Podcast

Ep 045: Jamil | Muslim-Christian Ponders Prayer | Street Epistemology San Antonio, Texas 23 September 2015 More details about this talk below. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Bails & Fails: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BANDF Playlist of Interventions Broadcast Live: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-LIVE Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA Jamil was raised by a Muslim father and Christian mother with competing teachings, which may explain why accepts neither one. He did, however, still believe in a God with 100 percent confidence, largely because of prayer. I was tempted to tell Jamil that he was a walking Outsider Test for Faith (read the book by John W. Loftus), but that may have just confused things, and wasn't really helpful to the conversation at the time. After approximately 11 minutes of friendly talk with an sincere focus on the efficacy of prayer, Jamil decided that 60 percent would be a more honest position for his confidence in his God belief. Mistakes: It was nearly 100F at the time and I was eager to take a break, but I regret not giving Jamil a few more seconds of reflection at the end of the talk after he lowered his confidence to the 60% mark. I should have also offered him a word of encouragement for being so honest and at the very least asked if he wanted to keep talking. Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 044: Maheep (2) | Faith is Blind Confidence | Street Epistemology San Antonio, Texas 20 November 2015 More details about this talk below. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of My Top Five: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-TOP5 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Bails & Fails: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BANDF Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA Playlist of Maheep: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-MAHEEP After having searched for Maheep for nearly two months since our first talk, I jumped at the chance to have a few more minutes after spotting him, despite a noisy location, unprepared equipment (just finished conducting five talks beforehand and my fatigued gear was stashed away), and a very small window of time. I was determined to keep the discussion on faith, even though Maheep offered another reason for holding his belief (the longevity of the Hindu books and claims). Now that he has my card saved on his phone, I'm hopeful we will have a chance to talk under better circumstance. Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Maheep originally stated he was 75 percent confident that Vishnu exists, but so much time had passed, it seems we both remembered that number being 80 percent. I didn't seem like a big deal, but worth noting here as a mistake. Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 043: Maheep (1) | Family + Faith = Vishnu | Street Epistemology San Antonio, Texas 1 October 2015 More details about this talk below. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of My Top Five: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-TOP5 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Bails & Fails: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BANDF Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA Playlist of Maheep: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-MAHEEP Maheep is a Hindu and 75 sure Vishnu exists. He uses both faith and the fact he was raised with the belief to have such a high degree of confidence. Near the end of the talk Maheep admits that, were he not raised in the belief and viewed it as an outsider, he would hold a much lower confidence. This talk had some interesting parallels to my chat with Makayla. Playlist of Makayla: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-MAKAYLA Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 042: Kumar (2) | Everything is an Illusion | Street Epistemology San Antonio, Texas 18 November 2015 More details about this talk below. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of My Top Five: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-TOP5 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Bails & Fails: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BANDF Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA Playlist of Kumar: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-KUMAR Kumar has come to the realization that this life is an illusion, and the only way to escape it is through your soul and God. Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 041: Kumar | Be Good or Karma Will Punish | Street Epistemology San Antonio, Texas 14 September 2015 More details about this talk below. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Bails & Fails: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BANDF Playlist of Interventions Broadcast Live: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-LIVE Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA Kumar visits the local Sai Baba temple for relaxation, but not so much for the God part. However, he does think a God will intervene in karmic justice if you do something bad. It appears that Kumar really enjoyed the talk, as he came back later to chat some more. I think this exchange was a great example of how SE is friendly and most people really like examining their beliefs in a respectful manner. Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 040: Catholic | I Prefer to Believe in a God | Street Epistemology San Antonio, Texas 30 November 2015 More details about this talk below. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of My Top Five: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-TOP5 Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Bails & Fails: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BANDF Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA This young woman is 85 confident her Catholic God exists, but we end the talk after it becomes clear that she needs some time to process the discussion. Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: I realized afterwards that offering to meet again with a friend in tow could be seen as insulting; it was not intended that way, but rather as a way to take some of the pressure off of meeting me again. Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 039: Wally (4) | A Brief Encounter | Street Epistemology San Antonio, TX 14 September 2015 Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA I run into Wally at his new university and we spend a little time catching up. Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Hero 3 Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 038: Wally (3) | Extraordinary Claims Require Faith | Street Epistemology San Antonio, TX 30 April 2015 Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA In this third encounter, Wally admits after thinking about it since our last talk that the method of faith that he uses is no different that the method of faith other may use to conclude in "secular beliefs" (e.g., Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, or life on Mars). However, because the stakes are higher with his God belief, lots of people believe it, and there are books that say it's true, he's justified in using faith. Wally spotted me just as I was wrapping up my talk with Miguel, and unfortunately on my very last battery, as I had been interviewing others in this location for more than four hours. When the battery died on us, Wally and I looked at each other as if to say, "Oh damn", and our conversation shifted from the topics at hand to where he could reach me, where he could locate the videos, to have a thick skin when reading some of the comments, that it is not my intent to make fun of his beliefs. I also asked if Wally and his wife would be willing to come to my house for dinner with my family sometime. He quickly declined, but said if he spotted me in public he'd probably sit down with me again. Should we meet a fourth time, I would like to explore why Wally would not be able to use faith to conclude that my Invisible Dragon existed. Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Mistakes: I probably shouldn't have assigned a weight value to the my Invisible Dragon. Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Hero 3 Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 037: Wally (2) | Differentiating Faiths | Street Epistemology San Antonio, TX 9 April 2015 Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA Wally happened by so we picked up our discussion on faith after a bit of friendly chit-chat. The conversation ends with Wally agreeing to investigate how the faith he uses is any different than the faith someone else might use for non-religious means. Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Hero 3 Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210

Ep 036: Wally (1) | Faith is Better Than Evidence | Street Epistemology San Antonio, TX 2 April 2015 Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210 Playlist of Street Epistemology: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-EPS Playlist of SE Breakdown Tutorials: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-BD-TUTORIALS Playlist of Secular Exchanges: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SEC-EXCH Playlist of Interviews & Presentations: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-ST-TALKS Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Want to Learn More About Street Epistemology? Read the Book: Peter Boghossian: 'A Manual for Creating Atheists' http://tinyurl.com/SE-PB-AMFCA At first Wally appeared to be a curious passerby, wanting to know what I was doing on the campus after seeing me there off and on for the past couple of weeks. Before long, an intervention was underway. I don't know if it was because of the odd way Wally approached me, or his appearance with the dark sunglasses and cap, but I had the feeling that Wally (if that was indeed his real name) was perhaps familiar with me in some way. The comfort that Wally gets from the faith he uses to believe in his God is apparently all he needs. Just like Islamic extremists. Playlist of Wally: http://tinyurl.com/PL-AM-SE-WALLY Music provided by Chet Hovatter. Mistakes: Please let me know if you notice any mistakes so that I can address them here for self-improvement. Video captured using Go-Pro Hero 3 Video edited using PowerDirector The views addressed here are mine and mine alone, and are not necessarily views shared by members of my family and friends. Twitter: https://twitter.com/magnabosco Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/magnabosco210