Comments on: From our bulging “How not to do statistics” file

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Most religiously free countries have Christian backgrounds

Sat, 14 Jul 2007 21:31:46 +0000

[...] To add a note of surrealism, a commenter at Christian Post absurdly recommends Gregory S Paul’s thoroughly debunked study purporting to show that religious belief is detrimental to societal health. The same commenter even more absurdly recommends the credulous article in Skeptic touting Paul’s misguided study. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Our bulging How not to do statistics file just filled up and burst

Fri, 02 Mar 2007 06:24:48 +0000

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By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Gregory Paul shot down again

Sun, 14 Jan 2007 00:01:11 +0000

[...] Gregory Paul shot down again By StatGuy Gregory S Paul’s study on social dysfunction and religiosity has taken a beating from several bloggers, myself included. Now it emerges that the Journal of Religion and Society, which published Mr Paul’s paper, has also printed a thorough refutation. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Religious conservatives donate far more than secular liberals

Sat, 18 Nov 2006 00:48:17 +0000

[...] This new research is yet another nail in the coffin of the claim, made by Gregory S Paul and Skeptic magazine among others, that secularism is good (or, at least, not bad) for society. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » I can‚Äôt believe that atrocious article is still being touted

Sat, 23 Sep 2006 02:37:11 +0000

[...] One year ago next week, I wrote one of my most popular posts critically assessing Mr Paul’s paper, showing it to be statistically invalid. I concluded that, in my professional judgment as a statistician, the study should not be taken seriously. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Statistics growing in popularity

Sat, 15 Apr 2006 16:54:37 +0000

[...] Then, on the evening of 27 September, I posted this item—a review of an article on religion and social problems by one Gregory Paul that received an uncritically favourable report in the [U.K.] Times. I reviewed the article from the perspective of technical statistics, and I have to say it wasn’t pretty for those who agree with Mr Paul that religion is bad for social health. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Mystery man

Sat, 15 Apr 2006 01:32:36 +0000

[...] Mystery man By StatGuy The study by Gregory S. Paul on religious faith and social problems has been spinning around the blogosphere for two days now. So, who is this Gregory Paul anyway? It turns out that he is really a "freelance" paleontologist with no apparent experience in sociology, social science research, or statistical analysis. (Those who have read this post already know that Mr Paul’s knowledge of statistical analysis is, shall we say, sketchy.) [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Atheism’s intellectual pretensions

Sat, 15 Apr 2006 00:03:47 +0000

[...] As one who made a contribution to debunking Mr Paul's silly little investigation, I witnessed ad hominem attacks of the most puerile sort: "You're a Christian, so I can’t believe a word you say". It's rather sad–pathetic, really. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Keep your story straight

Fri, 14 Apr 2006 23:54:27 +0000

[...] Keep your story straight By StatGuy Rosa Brooks, a defender of Gregory Paul's study on religious belief and social problems, was given air time recently on Tucker Carlson's MSNBC show. Based on the show's transcript, however, Ms Brooks made a hash of Mr Paul's study, which was incompetent to begin with. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » George Gallup vindicates StatGuy

Fri, 14 Apr 2006 23:04:55 +0000

[...] George Gallup vindicates StatGuy By StatGuy George Gallup, one of the most respected public opinion pollsters in the world, echoes some of the criticisms I made about Gregory Paul's study which purported to find a positive correlation between religious belief and several social pathologies. Mr Gallup has written a letter to the Times of London taking Ruth Gledhill to task for her uncritical news article puffing Mr Paul's little study. [...]

By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » Dogma bites man

Fri, 14 Apr 2006 15:43:25 +0000

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By: Magic Statistics - “I accept no responsibility for statistics, which are a form of magic beyond my comprehension.” — Robertson Davies » That Gregory S. Paul study again

Sun, 02 Apr 2006 01:11:30 +0000

[...] That Gregory S. Paul study again By StatGuy Remember that study by one Gregory S. Paul that purported to show a correlation between religious faith and social pathologies? It was quickly trounced by several bloggers, me included. Now Foyle at Verum Serum, "an eclectic Christian blog by two guys from Orange County, CA.", has done a lot of research, both on Mr Paul and his findings. [...]