From: cjdcosta@eos.ncsu.edu (CHRISTOPHER J DCOSTA)
Subject: Re: Jealousy (from the pages of omni....)
Originator: cjdcosta@c00403-346dan.eos.ncsu.edu
Reply-To: cjdcosta@eos.ncsu.edu (CHRISTOPHER J DCOSTA)
Organization: North Carolina State University, Project Eos
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 00:35:59 GMT


kumar@ug.cs.dal.ca (kumar yelubandi) writes:
>
>[...]
>	Of course, you might want to change the charter and make MENSA
>	a training centre for those who represent America's best chance
>	for winning the World Chess Championship, the Nobel prize, the
>	Tchaikovsky Piano Competition, etc.  I'm afraid your comparison
>	falls short.
>
>		Kumar
>	
>ps:	...and if you are resistant to that argument, consider that 
>	an athlete's speed may be timed accurately to 1/100th of a
>	second.  How accurately can you measure one's intelligence?

Ahem. All you've done here is prove that Mensa isn't the Santa Monica
Club. As with your previous post, this is a redundant and rather obvious
conclusion. This person was only trying to show you how your logic could
have absurd implications. So did I , in my previous post.

Please think about it carefully before you decide to persist debating the 
validity of those conclusions.


>	(This question as long as it is unresolved, is undoubtedly, 
>	MENSA's Achilles' Heel when it claims it is NOT an elitist
>	fabric sewn together by artificial thread) 


I'm sure this sounded fairly reasonable to you when you posted it, but I'm 
afraid that from this side it sounds dogmatic, combative, and provocative.
You shouldn't be too surprised if someone flames you for it.

>"This question as long as it is unresolved is undoubtedly, 
>	MENSA's Achilles' Heel"

The question is in your mind, not ours, and it's resolution is of no 
consequence to Mensa. Achilles Heel?!! Please. 
We use what we feel is the best and the most convenient method of testing
for our members. If you know of a better one, take it up with the AMC. 

> when it claims it is NOT an elitist fabric 

To tell you the truth, I don't care if Mensa's considered elitist. Maybe some
do. But there are worse things that could be said of an organisation.

>sewn together by artificial thread

There you go again. This "artificiality" is your contention. You'll have to do
better that.

And in a later post:
>ps:	Intelligence is an AWARENESS...an awareness it is neither 
>	unique nor common; neither fleeting nor resident; neither
>	bounded nor uncontained.  In fact, if I could define it,
>	I wouldn't be intelligent.  Hence, my skepticism for 
>	MENSA's attempt to portray itself as an organization of
>	(and for) intelligence.


Correction. This is YOUR definition of intelligence. When it becomes
adopted as a standard by academia and industry, I'll be impressed by
whatever point you're trying to make. Until then, it's nothing more 
than your opinion, and you're perfectly entitled to that. But don't
cast others into your subjective mold and present it as a reasonable
justification of your views. It's not a logically compelling argument.

Kumar this may come as a surprise to you, but there have been dozens
before you who hung around with the same tiresome arguments that you 
employ now. Most of us were initially surprised, but after a year of
pointless argument can only deduce that these were probably cases of
post-bad-SAT-blues. And I, like most others, am weary of repeating the 
same old rebuttals. So you'll have to forgive us (self included) if 
sooner or later  we lose our patience and get offensive. You are not 
alone in your dislike of Mensa, and rest assured, we can live with that.
Newsgroups: rec.org.mensa