Learn Body Language

mysticisms, graphology, body language, and the like... isnt it just rationalized stereotyping and prejudice?

Id like to believe that I can learn to read peoples body language and whatnot. Useful skills, that would help me in life. I fully understand the desire to believe in such things. Perhaps you could interpret body actions and facial expressions... to a certain degree... but even that is just a statistical gamble, isnt it? Things like facial bone structures, and other static characteristics of a persons physical being (like palmistry), are used to make assertions about people. Often times, like many who believe in the mysticisms such as psychic powers and intuition, put so much blind and arrogant faith in it as to assert their truth even when conflicted with other facts and whatnot. I have seen women, even on y!a, who actually get angry and send emails to me, because I criticize their "ability" to prejudge people with mysticisms instead of the standard social stereotypes. Does anyone else see or agree with this bigotry in our society? Regardless of the statistics, stereotypes are still just stereotypes. And when people put so much faith in them as to judge accordingly, and never give people the chance to prove themselves otherwise... how is it any better than racism? Just because its more abstract, ancient mysticism, or spiritually based gives it no more credence I was once rejected by a woman who seemed pretty in to me... we got along great. And I mean GREAT. Until she found out my birth date... and she judged me and rejected me not because of my age, but because of my astrological sun sign. I realized then how superficial she was. I just think its sad how a means of stereotyping and prejudging is given a greater degree of faith not because of scientifically acquired statistical data... but strictly because its unproven and abstract. We pretend to be an enlightened society. Is anyone else tired of seeing questions posted in the horoscopes section or the singles and dating sections about this stuff? "Should I dump my boyfriend? He might cheat! The second letter of his middle name is an 'R'."

Public Comments

1. You're basically nuanced and correct, however, you would be attacking a straw man if you totally condemned and rejected that which is true...if anything...beyond materialist categories and causalities. http://www.tiller.org "Extraordinary Knowing," Dr. Elizabeth Mayer, http://www.divinecosmos.com http://www.quantumbrain.org http://www.noetic.org http://www.integralscience.org http://noosphere.princeton.edu "Hope for the World: Spiritual Galavanoplasty," O. M. Aivanhov, "Mindful Universe," Dr. Henry P. Stapp, are worthwhile.
2. For many people is terribly hard and scary to give up of concept they interpret the world with. Don't waste your time with them, or at least don't feel disappointed.
3. It does seem that people lean towards an answer, any answer- whether it be mysticism, stereotypes, even religious practices. The need for a feeling of containment is great, anxiety is often the result of feeling unfamiliar/ungrounded/unknowing. I think any external belief system is part of an effort to deal with the truly unknowable things about life.
4. This is what astrology excels in as well. Bigotry and stereotyping based on birth-date which no one has control over. However, these are accepted bigotries for those that "believe". Never mind that statistics can not validate their claims. That would be mystics best evidence if it did. To them genetics can't be a more likely reason for physical features. You got to believe in something a lot of people say. Is it not better, when possible, to know instead of blind belief? I argue heavy in the horoscope section not to change believers minds but to inform those that are on the fence. I get some hate mail, but I get some thanks for being rational with my answers.
5. I agree with you, these are all stereotypes. Nobody can really understand other people unless they observe or find patterns in people... that's the only way we can really understand them. Knowing that, people will then make their own conclusions, find a 'pattern' that isn't really so justified. Really, I find people like this take life a bit too seriously. I find that these people (and I mean no offence, it's only my opinion) are less mature than the rest of society, who cannot get a grip on the fact that it is not so easy to define another person based on what they are. It's the who we should all be concerened about. I think Astrology, or any sort of mysticism should only exist for the fun of it, not to the point, as you say, racism.
6. You know how many people refuse to learn science and depend their life on nonsense instead. But then statistic are statistic are statistic.