White Crows

A little note on the name of the channel. White Crows refers to the following quote from the "father of American Psychology," William James (1842 - 1910). He said: "If you wish to upset the law that all crows are black, you mustn't seek to show that no crows are; it is enough if you prove one single crow to be white."

This quote speaks to me because, as someone with no sense of deep faith and a huge level of natural skepticism, I struggle to ever rest on one idea of metaphysics, epistemology or religious perspective. It all feels so shifting and uncertain all the time.

James in this quote is referring to the notion that any claim about everything, anything of the form "all crows are black," carries a burden almost nothing can bear. It can never be, even slightly, wrong or errant.

If materialism and naturalism are true, which many people do believe, then all it takes is one example of a "white crow" to put them back in question. One NDE being real, one religious miracle, one philosophical argument, one scientific result that causes a terminal problem for any of these constructs means we have to reconsider the whole thing again. Not 1000s, not reproducible, just one.

I'm not saying that one definitely has happened or is true. But if we can find one such thing that we trust is real, then the given account of things, which I find a pretty depressing one, is no longer the only option on the table.

So this channel is set out to provide to people who feel like me an exploration of these ideas. I won't have complete conviction in all of the stories I share, the ideas I explore or conclusions I reach but if just one allows someone to feel more optimistic and fulfilled, then I've done what I set out to do!

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 5