that it might not be malware, but simply ancient software incompatible with newer documents?

My company doesn't pay me any honey buns. :(

You're correct in that there are some similarities - namely, troubleshooting and discernment to select the proper tool to use, but past that your analogy fails. Even the most junior developer has a level of creative freedom that surpasses most, if not all, vocational jobs.

This is even more apparent in mid and senior level positions. It would be more appropriate to label us linguists, architects, artists, or inventors than to liken developers to auto mechanics.

I believe you were intending to compare auto mechanics to computer technicians.

I believe either pronunciation is valid, but the spelling is definitely "giga". Great Scott!

Giga, not jigga.

Good science never ignores "unknown variables". The whole point of having a control set in an experiment is to isolate the variable being tested from all other variables, known or unknown.

How do you know, beyond all doubt, that you've isolated something beyond external influence?

I'm not certain what you're trying to argue here. Beliefs that are clearly irrational given what we know now might not have been clearly irrational before. Besides that, intelligent people often hold both rational and irrational beliefs.

Quantum mechanics continuously reveals examples of counter-intuitive and unbelievable behavior. What seems irrational now may later be proven true. All I'm saying is that it's foolish to be so sure of "the way things are" that one mocks and disregards ideas that seem to go against one's understanding of reality.

The placebo effect is well understood, even if we don't know the exact mechanism.

http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSTRE59E53320091015

Any demonstrably irrational belief should be mocked. Loudly. And often. Especially if it's trying to claim special privilege as a "religious belief" (whatever that means).

I politely disagree, citing above reasoning.

1875 was just a blink in time ago. That which we "know" will *always* be overshadowed by that which we do not know.

I'm no doomsday prophet, but I will say that when science ignores the unknown variables in any given situation, science becomes a religion. Carl Jung was hardly a crackpot, but believed in the existence of a collective unconscious as well as in synchronicity. Add to this the power of faith / placebo, and it suddenly becomes ignorant to mock nearly any belief.

Nobody likes a tattle-tale.

It's a well known fact that the ultra-rich "run" the country. It's also demonstrable that the gap between the "ruling" class and the "working" class is immense in magnitude, while the gap between the middle and the lower class is comparatively insignificant. Liberal vs. conservative, right vs. left is nothing more than a distraction.

They do already have "evangelists" in place around the world.

Let him live his life as he sees fit; eventually he'll move on. He might have to have some hard lessons until then, but when faced with sink or swim even the hardest core addicts will adapt. Being a friend and showing your concern is a good thing, but it's not your duty to save him from himself. Eventually he'll realize that his achievements are virtual. That doesn't mean you should pay his bills or other such sillyness. Enabling him hurts him more.