Can we have a proper 'woo' topic?

[IndigoBarbie]

Dear MNHQ, I fully believe in freedom of speech and experiences, and as such I go out of my way to assist those who are asking more angelic/psychic etc questions, since this is my real life in a nutshell. Getting sooooo fed up of threads becoming all about others who don't believe and blatantly attacking those of us on thread who want to actively discuss and share and I think a lovely new topic of 'woo' or something you feel is an appropriate title could be provided for us to have proper sharings and discussions.

"Practiced for centuries" doesn't mean it works. Tarot has been practiced for centuries. Homeopathy has been practiced for centuries.

"Worked for many people" is anecdote. They have not worked for the vast majority.

Placebo effect is real. The mind is very powerful. That is why you need large scale placebo-controlled, randomised, double-blind trials to test the effectiveness of a remedy. Acupuncture & homeopathy fail those.

When you say this on woo threads, you get accused of derailing the thread and disrespecting people's beliefs.

Idontsee - Hypnotherapy didn't help DH quit smoking, but maybe the practitioner wasn't very good. I have seen some benefit from it after birth trauma.

Maybe "worked for many " was wrong.. I should have said. It's a method which millions of Asian people use in their daily lives and still will do after your long gone. Lots of GPs are suggesting complimentary alternatives OR to run along side current medication.

Your right about your last sentence though, just because you don't believe in works doesn't mean it's fake. Maybe you should ring up all the universities that study and teach this that's it's all a sham.

Having a topic would simply brigade the threads into one place (and perhaps bring tumbleweed, as has done so for so many other topics).

It does not - as MNHQ have pointed out so many times on other subjects - make any part of MN a "safe space".

Those who want to decry will still do so, whatever topic the thread is posted in.

Unless of course you want to change the whole nature of MN.

Regarding hypno, it totally depends on how receptive you are to it.

While on holiday, myself and my friend got on stage to join a hypno show. I got asked to sit down but my friend was allowed to stay. She ended up eating a large raw onion, while after being told it was an apple.

She reeked all night and it seriously hampered her copping of capabilities ah those Ibiza summer days

If we do get this woo/unexplained/aliens/angels topic, will unbelievers such as myself be welcome to start threads about unexplained events and come up with theories for rational explanations? Or will it just be a serious topic for people who believe in chakras and whatnot?

They all ready do eau

Sorftly - Again, "used for many centuries by many people" doesn't mean anything except many people are gullible & don't have access to all the information.

Tarot, homeopathy, and voodoo have been used for centuries and no doubt will continue to be used. But they don't work.

I am an unreconstructed woo. I don't really have anyone with whom I can talk about my interests in an exploratory and sharing way.

For instance,

I regularly use binaural beats and solfeggio meditations - many of which are created to 'open your third eye', 'balance your base chakra' etc. Mostly I use them to get better sleep - but it's interesting to know if anything else is changing. I talk about this to nobody.

I also use bach flower essences, although not as much as crystal eseences. Mostly, this is experimental - they don't cost much and I like to see what, if any, changes happen whilst using them. I talk about this to nobody.

I make herbal tinctures - just recently, from hawthorn blossom. I can talk about this a bit more freely and, indeed, a friend asked me to make the tincture for her.

I've learned to do psychic readings - people have paid me for them.

I've studied tarot - learned a lot about psychology and the wheels within wheels dynamic of individual and society life.

I have plenty of space in my life for angels and fairies - life is sometimes tough, I believe in marshalling all the resources of the world.

If I were to bring any of the above topics to a thread on this forum, I think that I would very quickly shift to a real questioning of my sanity, of the validity of any of the above and to people telling me that I had no grasp of science. There would probably be no development of the topic and I would rapidly be pushed into a defensive position.

I'm not outspoken about the things that interest me, but it would be great to have a safe place to discuss them and to not be treated as an idiot when I do open my mouth.

Where? I've only ever seen a handful of atheist threads in the religion topic and I used to read it every night (until the app went kaput). I would absolutely love a separate topic but I would like to be able to talk about big cat sightings and urban legends and things like that.

Why can't the religion/spirituality topic be used for threads about angels?

Thanks Cote, might as well give it a whirl and see what happens.
Wrt to Tarot , it entirely depends on how you use it . I was taught to use it as a meditation aid and a way of looking at a problem differently (using the interpretation of the cards to approach an issue in ways I might not have thought of) rather than as a way to predict the future. I find it rather useful . I know a few people who use them this way, some woo some not.

"Why can't the religion/spirituality topic be used for threads about angels?"

It is used for such threads.

But Indigo isn't happy about the valid and rational criticism she gets on such threads so she wants a protected topic to sell her woo.

Just now, for example, she is about to talk about Quantum Physics on the angel thread in Religion/Spirituality topic. It should be a sobering read.

Oh, I see. Protected topics is a stupid idea (except SEN, I know they had trouble). If people don't want debate then I'm sure there are plenty of specialist forums about angels. You can't ban certain MNers from posting in certain topics unless they break the talk guidelines.

I still want an alien abduction and werewolf topic though.

I don't have a massive issue with a woo thread as long as woo-sters realise their views may be robustly challenged, as in other areas of MN.

I do have one substantial concern though.

People who are desperate/feel they are out of options may turn towards woo out of desperation. My concern is that a dedicated topic would attract such vulnerable people who may then be preyed on/given damaging advice e.g. PMed with an offer to contact their dead child (for a small fee), or someone seeing suffering horrific side effects from life saving medication might be persuaded to try homeopathy instead. For this reason the topic should be closely monitored with perhaps a disclaimer at the top about medical advice etc etc

you don't believe in voodoo!!!! Now I can't take you seriously !!

Just because you can't touch it or see it, doesn't mean it doesn't exist. There are many colours of the rainbow we can't see, does it mean they are fake colours? No, just means we can't see them with the naked eye.

And cote starting to sound a bit personal now with regards to looking for posters on other threads and reporting back here. Didn't think that was in the 'spirit of MN'

I

Me too Eau

That's a good point about vulnerable people- maybe MN could put a disclaimer at the top of the forum or some links to organisations that might be able to help.

Eau can we include ghosts and spooky stuff into a werewolf and alien topic? I love me a good ghost story!!
In all seriousness the point about vulnerable people is a good one, but that's not confined to an out of the ordinary belief system, it's endemic to religion in general. Many do turn to religion out of desperation, there are charlatans everywhere. Believe it or not there are many of us who approach many aspects of it with a healthy scepticism and could advise those people against falling for scams (which they are).

I think i'm beginning to understand.

Does it ever occur to anybody that if we weren't always having to defend ourselves from attack dressed up as 'debate' that we would be able to police our own threads?

Just because you believe one thing doesn't mean you believe in everything yanno and anybody knows you're not supposed to charge for using a gift.. people who peddle those sort of wares are given short shrift anywhere, no matter what the forum.

if I wanted to chat to like minded people about how one of my spooks is making a pest out of itself and have a giggle with shared storys, I should be allowed to without somebody storming in all gung ho about how much a pile of crap the whole thing is and not letting up until the thread has been stamped to death.

If I wanted to start a thread about what tonics you can knock up just from what's growing in the garden, I should be allowed to without somebody coming on and stamping on the thread until it's dead.

If I had a panic on because i fucked up my bottle and forgot to put the broken glass in as usual and should I make another one or just see what happens rather than dig it up, it would be nice if I could do that here but I would go elsewhere.

Not every thread needs to become a 'debate' but it's obvious that allowing threads like that would normalise them somewhat and that scares people or offends them.

Stick to the mainstream topics because diverting from that upsets people, hiding to nothing and I think the only way we are going to be able to talk about such things is to utterly ignore the ones on a mission to kill the thread and hope they get bored and bugger off.

Yes, I love all those ghost story threads! And the urban myth ones.

My concern is that a dedicated topic would attract such vulnerable people who may then be preyed on/given damaging advice e.g. PMed with an offer to contact their dead child (for a small fee)

This in a nutshell, especially as someone has already claimed that she has 'helped' to find MNers missing children .

This worries me, a lot.

Originally I thought "Great, then I can hide it" but actually I'd end up spending more time there in case distressed, bereaved, distraught MNers were being preyed on.

Bad idea.

but why does it mean that those who would hide that topic would feel the need to keep an eye on it. There are those who would use it who would do exactly the same thing

You get heed the balls on every part of a forum and it's dealt with.

Suurely there are specific woo forums out there that don't allow debate? Can't you use them rather than using an unmoderated forum like MN.

Offering services in exchange for money is against guidelines isn't it?

If I had a panic on because i fucked up my bottle and forgot to put the broken glass in as usual and should I make another one or just see what happens rather than dig it up, it would be nice if I could do that here but I would go elsewhere.

er, what?