No Intellectual Discipline Without Formal Education.

[_harmony]

Sure, just call my personal helpdesk at 1800EATSH*T. :P

For the record, just about everyone eats sh*t at some point in their lives, and for many people, eating sh*t is a daily occurance.

For example: anyone who eats pork, or any of its derivitivies like bacon, sausage, ham, or Canadian bacon, is, for all practical purposes, eating sh*t. Why? Because pigs are re-eaters. Their food is digested twice. Once in the form it is delivered into the food trough, and again as they root about eating their own fecal matter. Therefore, anyone who eats pork is eating what the pigs ate: fecal matter.

The same for anyone who drinks or eats any milk product, eats eggs, or eats anything that is grown with an organic fertilizer. It is impossible to completely remove all fecal matter from cow's milk, chicken eggs, or organic fertilizer. '

Another source of fecal matter is water that is used to water crops, if that water is not purified. So virtually 99% of all food grown in the US is watered with water that includes fish s***. So even vegetarians are not exempt from eating sh*t.

Therefore, eating sh*t is indeed what we do.

Next question?

[_Yoda]

I love you, Harm! :)

[_Yoda]

Moderator Note--PP, you have been on the board long enough to know what the rules are concerning appropriate language in the different forums. Please refrain from using the word, "sh*t" in the Terrestrial Forum. I am guilty of having done this as well on occasion, so it is a reminder to myself, too. Shades has made it very clear what the guidelines for the forums are, and we need to respect that.

[_Yoda]

You cannot possibly even understand the concept of "intellectual discipline," since you do not hold a college degree.

This was meant by Scratch to be, of course, another slur against my intelleigence and background, but that's not why I'm starting a new thread regarding it.

I'm just wondering what others here thinking of this concept; the concept of credentialism which says that if one has not been to college or university, one cannot have a deep, advanced, or substantive knowledge of anything and should be ignored out of hand. Now obviously, some things, like the natural and hard sciences, medicine, and practical matters such as the construction trades, require hands on experience, field work, and laboratory work. But why, for example, could one not be an expert on seventeenth century French literature, or Greek mythology, or LDS history, or political economy, or various theories and modalities of modern psychotherapy, or New Testament textual studies, simply by reading, studying, and digesting the relevant knowledge in that area?

One wouldn't have the credential, and so one wouldn't be a professional in that area, but how would this affect one's having expertise in it?

Does anybody know, by the way, what advanced degrees or academic background Scratch has such that he must frame all his disagreements with me in terms of me being a "hick", a "rube" and generally, a dunce? I've had two years of formal college and twenty five of sustained, informal college (combined with an ever decreasing diet of TV, movies, entertainment in general). I am planning to return to college this year, and work toward an advanced degree in, at the moment, political science, with a minor in western philosophy. This, however, doesn't imply that I couldn't learn the very same stuff on my own. I could, and probably right here in my own study with the personal library I have now. But I'd like the credential for various reasons.

I wanted to comment on Coggins' original OP.

Having worked in the IT field, I can definitely attest to the fact that you do not need to hold a degree to be an expert or a professional in a particular field. The majority of the practical experience I gained regarding computers came from self study and on the job experience. It wasn't until I decided to teach that I pursued my Master's degree in Computer Science.

Congratulations, Coggins, on your decision to go back to school! It's never too late to gain more education, and I know you will do very well. Most younger students are scared of us "non-traditional" students because we've been around the block a few times. We understand how the job market works, and we are very motivated to learn. I'm sure you will raise the curve in your classes and get the students mad at you. ;)

Good luck in your endeavors!