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In Reply to: Re: Bad Social Science & TF posted by Emile D on June 20, 2005 at 19:59:38:
I have not taken even a basic Sociology 101 course, so you're insights are helpful. Just so you know, I was using the ordinary dictionary meaning of the word 'apostate' to refer to all former members. The Concise Oxford dictionary defines it as "a person who renounces a former belief, adeherence, etc." An adherent is defined as "1. a supporter of a party, person, etc. 2. a devotee of an activity." Since you say that not all former members are apostates, I'm curious, is there another meaning of apostate that is used in sociology?
I agree with you that academics should be interested in what the ex-member can contribute toward documenting the basic facts of a shared social history. That's why I'm puzzled by what seems to be the widespread shunning of the exmember community.
