Will Schryver appeals to authority

Post by **_Bond...James Bond** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 5:13 pm

Recently over at MAD William Schryver dropped this little attack on our very own California Kid (with a side of Appeal to Authority).

And speaking of hubris … here we have 21-year-old California Kid, barely out of puberty, disparaging the work and intelligence of a bona fide Egyptologist, graduated with honors from Yale University, published in numerous journals, and trained in the specific area of the Greco-Roman era of Egyptian language and history. There is something that “borders on absurdity” here, but it is not the work of Dr. John Gee.

http://www.mormonapologetics.org/index. ... 3343&st=20

Just a few questions for Will if I may:

What does CK's age have to do with this arguments?
(A: nothing except as an attempt to discredit CK on the assumption as a 21 year old he lacks experience/degrees/whatever)

What does being barely out of puberty have to do with making an argument?
(A: nothing except for making the assumption that CK is immature or inexperienced...PS: Just because a person is young doesn't mean they don't have the right answer)

Why do you feel the need to justify Gee by posting his resume?
(A: It's an appeal to authority argument)

Post by **_Sethbag** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 5:23 pm

If I'm not mistaken, and the guy hasn't spent two years on an LDS mission, 21 years old is old enough to have graduated from college. Does Will Schryver mean to imply that a college graduate doesn't know how to think or something?

Personally, I'm rather chagrined to hear about CaliforniaKid's tender young age. If I'd screwed up in High School he could have been my son, and yet I bow down to him in unworthiness when it comes to A) knowing the facts of the Book of Abraham arguments, and B) being able to explain them clearly, concisely, and powerfully. I don't agree with CK's belief in non-LDS Christianity, but with regards his command of the Book of Abraham issues, I have nothing but the strongest admiration for him.

Will's post was pretty bad. He likes to do what I think of as a sort of "shock and awe" campaign. If he can come in swinging and throw enough steak around, and attack harshly enough, perhaps he think all the critics will be cowed. Personally I think CK's posts are like a laser able to cut straight through all the smoke and mirrors and show the real facts of the case.

Post by **_Bond...James Bond** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 5:26 pm

Sethbag wrote:If I'm not mistaken, and the guy hasn't spent two years on an LDS mission, 21 years old is old enough to have graduated from college.

Depends on if they get out of high school at 17 or 18 (says this 21 year old ;)

Personally, I'm rather chagrined to hear about CaliforniaKid's tender young age. If I'd screwed up in High School he could have been my son, and yet I bow down to him in unworthiness when it comes to A) knowing the facts of the Book of Abraham arguments, and B) being able to explain them clearly, concisely, and powerfully. I don't agree with CK's belief in non-LDS Christianity, but with regards his command of the Book of Abraham issues, I have nothing but the strongest admiration for him.

Me too.

Personally I think CK's posts are like a laser able to cut straight through all the smoke and mirrors and show the real facts of the case.

Me too. I'm a big fan of "less is more" writing.

Post by **_beastie** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 6:15 pm

It always strikes me as ironic when LDS resort to this sort of apologetics, given the tendency of church leaders to disparate the "intellectuals" and chastise people to rely on GOD, not the arm of flesh.

Besides, wasn't Joseph Smith just 14 years old when he was able to declare, with authority, (according to the LDS apologists) that all churches were in error?

Post by **_Great Cthulhu** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 6:45 pm

If I remember correctly, William Schryver does not have a college degree himself, but is currently enrolled in an acting or production program at a college in central Utah. He posted this information on Her Amun's thread about posters' education, but if you go and look now he has edited his earlier post. Did anyone else see the original post? It now reads:

Age:Old as dirt.

Qualifications to comment on a message board: None that I can think of.

And yet he much to say on the KEP and has been granted Pundit status over there.

Edit: I wonder if WS even graduated from high school himself, given how harshly he judges CalKid.

Post by **_grayskull** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 7:13 pm

Not all apeal to authorities are wrong, if they were, people would have to stop writing books with bibliographies. If the point of dispute is some general matter of Egyptian grammar, then without some kind of detailed argument from the kid, then we'd probably just accept Gee's word on authority. If the point of dispute is something Gee has written in his peer-reviewed publications or Doctoral dissertation etc., then we'd ask the kid to produce other authorities who disagree with Gee as evidence to the contrary of Gee's position. But if the point of dispute is a matter of Gee's crackpot hobbyhorse, the book of Abraham, where virtually no other Egyptologist takes interest as it has nothing to do with contemporary Egyptology, then Gee's authority is no longer relevant to the discussion.

Post by **_Pokatator** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 7:24 pm

Will is a weenie! I just might be the oldest poster on this board at 55, if not the oldest one of oldest. These comments on the Kid are a shame. I admire so many on this board regardless of age. I can be taught by anyone regardless of their age. I admire the Kid and I have learned a lot from him, he has a great mind. Will on the other hand.......I can't respect.

Post by **_Bond...James Bond** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 8:27 pm

Great Cthulhu wrote:If I remember correctly, William Schryver does not have a college degree himself, but is currently enrolled in an acting or production program at a college in central Utah. He posted this information on Her Amun's thread about posters' education, but if you go and look now he has edited his earlier post. Did anyone else see the original post?

I didn't see what Will had posted.

But an update to Sethbag's question from his above post on this thread....CK does have a BA and is entering graduate school.

Post by **_Pokatator** » Mon Apr 09, 2007 9:17 pm

Will prioviously told Juliann this

By the way, I just love the "Wrong-headed Wench" touch. I've been affectionately calling my wife "wench" for several years now, and I really appreciate the fact that you've provided me with a variation on the theme.

Boy, what woman would want to be his "possession"?

And remember he doesn't even know what a "Circle Jerk" is.

So, I really don't care about Will or his credentials, he lost all respect a long time ago.

Post by **_Jersey Girl** » Tue Apr 10, 2007 2:21 am

Okay, so I looked in on the thread. Will's comments are nothing more than a cheap shot made by someone who is unable to refute the position of another on boards like these. Cheap shots discredit the sender, not the target. It looks to me as if CK handled it extremely well. He appears to have picked up the ball and continues to carry it with grace and intelligence.

He did just the right thing given the circumstances.

Jersey Girl