Because it happened to me

Saying something is so because of personal experience is one of those slppery arguments that jsut doesn't work. It may be true that it happened to you, but that doesn't mean that an extrapolation to everyone else is indicated. This is especially true in instance where there are many causes and many possible outcomes.

Ex-gay watch has an article analyzing what's happening with one of those instances where a movement is using personal testimonies to 'prove' their case. Statements of conversion - that's the false argument examined at their site. But this happens on many issues.

One of the examples of this use of personal testimony to produce a false arguement ahppened with a friend of my father's Dad was helped by massage, it relaxed him. There are some clear benefits. But his masseuse believed that what she had was 'healing touch'. And that it actually cured people. Our relationship became problematic after she mentioned that she was writing a scientific paper on the subject. My brother, who was the caregiver, asked a couple of questions. Are you doing a control group? What evidence do you have? Have you considered doing a double blind study? And what the response were indicated that all the evidence she had was anecdotal on the 'this has really helped me' sort.

Anyone who's taken debate or logic or similar courses knows that there are a number of false arguements. Anecdotes or personal example can help figure out where to look for facts and evidence, but is not in itself evidence that what seems to be correlated is actualy causation. Or, as many of us were taught, correlation does not equal causation though there is rarely caussation without correlation.

Having experienced a change is not evidence that a change has happened related to what you believe caused the change. healing touch may just be the presence of something that is helpful and/or an illusion based on a need to believe that something/someone is doing what helps. But reports and testimonies of change are no more believeable in helaing touch than they are in the ex-gay movement. Proof of change requires more stringent research than just saying 'it happened, it happened.'