Atheists, if you don't believe in the supernatural, how do you explain..?

Question

Astrology! my profile is so accurate, i'm so typical of my sign. Can you guess what sign am I?

Love and blessings

but you didn't guess my sign!

Answer 1

Scorpio?

I am a scorpio.. I do not fit my profile very well though.

Answer 2

LOL.

Do you know the classroom astrology exercise? You have everyone supply their birthdates, places, times, etc. Then a week later you hand out "personal horoscopes" containing the usual stuff ("You have a great deal of untapped potential..."). Ask people how accurate those "personal horoscopes" were, and you'll get high ratings. Then you reveal that everyone in the room got the same horoscope. The video someone else mentioned is James Randi's "Secrets of the Psychics". I show it regularly in my research methods course.

You'll protest that your situation is entirely different, and that you wouldn't be taken in by this. But your situation is exactly the same, and yes, you would.

As others pointed out, all of the other horoscopes would fit you as well. If I were to take all of them, remove the identifiers, and have you guess which one was yours, you'd get it right 1/12 of the time - exactly the chance level - over the long run.

In short, astrology is explained by human beings' tendency to see patterns where there are none, and our eagerness to believe in the supernatural. There's certainly no need for any supernatural explanation: it's a completely natural phenomenon that we understand quite well.

Answer 3

Yeah and I am exactly like your sign, and so is your neighbor and your cousin. Astrological Horoscopes use extremely vague words and words that are typical of many individuals.

When I was in High school AP Psychology we watched a video where a high school class was chosen to participate in an experiment. A so called psychic went and asked for the horoscopes of each student, then told the class that she would write a personalized horoscope for each of them. The next day when she came back with the personalized horoscopes, she handed them out and told the students to read it to themselves. Each student claimed what the psychic/astrologer said was VERY accurate. The astrologer/psychic then revealed to the class that she was not a psychic and that every student received the exact same horoscope.

How do I explain astrology? A bunch of crap. Seriously, while our universe is a beautiful thing, how can the placement of a bunch of stars say predict things or read you personality?

Answer 4

I don't like to insult people and i am sorry if this offends you. I always felt people who believed in astrology are stupid, superstitious and could be suckered into anything. Not that you lack intelligence but as far as common sense goes then the word stupid applies. sorry.. I just like to point out that human emotion is basic and alot of the things they tell you in your chart would be correct for 80 percent of people. And don't you think it's would be stupid if everyone born on the same day and time are the same chart? People vary alot and your belief is arbitrary and i think it is so sad that you govern your life too something that is such a lie. I think its great that some woman who weighs 300 pounds and has not been laid for 5 years does peoples charts out of a trailor and people still believe.

all beliefs are arbitrary and there is no absolutes in right or wrong. Its all an idea or guess.

Answer 5

Explain astrology ? Easy, it has nothing to do with anything. If your sign is accurate, it's pure chance.
If you shop around, you'll find many with exactly the same sign who are the direct opposites of you.
The exact time of our birth has absolutely nothing to do with our personalities.
Much harm is done by astrology. That's the reason it was outlawed in ancient Rome. There are many cases where two people who would have made a wonderful marriage went separate ways because of their "signs".

Answer 6

I really like what Alfie said. Cool quote!
Astrology ... so, if the far distant planets have a bearing on what kind of person one is, it means that about a twelfth of the earth's population fall roughly under the same influence ... really?
I don't think so.
I'm so typical of MY sign also BUT, if I take a look through the other signs, I find me there too.
Codswallop. Purely entertainment for the gullible.

Keep your love for those who are in need and keep any blessings to yourself. Yukky behaviour.

Answer 7

Wow! Now I'm really confused...how can you be a righteous Christian and believe in astrology? I thought Christians were not supposed to believe in the occult. Oh, btw, astrology is bunk, but I'll take a stab at guessing your sign....let's see....I think you were born under the sign of Moronitude.

Answer 8

I am an astrologer, and I know it is nonsense, especially the horoscopes based only upon Sun Signs. The Sun has a small influence in a chart. To do horoscopes, I look at positions of all planets in the sky and in the houses as well as their aspects to each other and to the houses. You are gullible if you believe such stuff. At least get me or someone equally qualified to do your chart, rather than looking at the stuff in magazines, papers or books from the drugstore. It takes study to be an astrologer, even if it is nonsense. I charge $300 for doing one and I say in advance that it is nonsense.

Answer 9

How generalized is your profile? Is it accurate for everyone on the planet born at the same time as you? Generally, astrology is generalized to the point that some traits claimed are going to be present in a large enough population that someone is going to fit the profile...

Answer 10

Demonstrate something supernatural: Have your asstrollogy make an *exact* claim of an event and details on a specific time and date. That would prove you are right.

For example: My "bad moon rising" over Iraq predicts that at 12:00EST on Friday March 9 2007, George Bu**sh** will do the world a favour and blow his own head off with a shotgun. THAT is a prediction. If you claim asstrollogy can do it, then MAKE a prediction that is as accurate.

If you _can't_ make an exact prediction, then asstrollogy is bu**sh**.
If you _won't_ make an exact prediction, then you are a liar and coward who knows she can't produce on call.

Right now, you have *nothing*, you're just too uneducated and willfully blind to recognize that fact.


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Answer 11

I'm not an atheist, and I definitely believe/interact with the supernatural. However, astrology is so vague that it is quite easy to say, "Wow, this fits my profile perfectly!" That is why I never recommend using astrology as an absolute guide, because its vagueness allows it to be applied in multiple ways.