[pianotech] Humbly questioning choice of words, was Re: Totally glueless

[Mike Spalding]

Ron,

Funny how two people can be in near total agreement, express themselves 
using different words ( or words which mean different things to each) 
and end up concluding that they are in disagreement.  It boggles the 
mind.   In my prior pre-piano life supervising engineers I battled 
imprecise and ambiguous speech every day.  Today I'm struggling with the 
same issue with my tax accountant.  I sincerely hope you're incorrect 
regarding the futility of trying to communicate.

I think in future, when describing a belief on this forum, I shall say:  
"my experience and logic lead me to conclude.."

Mike

On 2/1/2013 1:43 PM, Ron Nossaman wrote:
> On 2/1/2013 1:03 PM, Mike Spalding wrote:
>
>> Perhaps there is a better word than "belief" for a conviction based on
>> examination of evidence - what term do you prefer?
>>
>> thanks
>>
>> Mike
>
> Hi Mike, Here's what I've got:
>
> be·lief (b¹-l¶f“) n. 1. The mental act, condition, or habit of placing 
> trust or confidence in another. 2. Mental acceptance of and conviction 
> in the truth, actuality, or validity of something. 3. Something 
> believed or accepted as true, especially a particular tenet or a body 
> of tenets accepted by a group of persons.
>
>
> This definition is pretty much what I see in action, with no 
> examination of evidence indicated. I prefer "think", which is what I 
> use and try to do. I'd rather be a thinker than a believer, whatever 
> the dictionary definition. I've been asked why I won't just "accept" a 
> concept and believe. That's faith based usage. I don't think this is 
> gracefully resolvable because everyone plays by different rules and 
> each believes themselves to be right, or thinks their point is 
> reasonable when they indicate the reasoning behind it. These are 
> vastly different attitudes. The best and clearest differentiation I've 
> come up with is the use of think rather than believe, but the only way 
> to avoid misunderstanding is to cease trying to communicate altogether.
>
> Ron N
>