Mike wrote:
...

Our watches and clocks all measure the spinning of the earth, one spin
= 24 hours. Now that is all very nice and everything, and it does get
me to appointments on time, but it is NOT "real."

Of course it is real. The clock gets you to appointments "on time" for
the same reason that directions and maps get you to appointments "on spot".

Imagine just before the big bang, when all the matter in the universe
sprang forth from some sub-atomic particle sized piece into all "our
matter" now. And, imagine four old bearded men sitting there and
observing the big bang--what do the wrist watches on their arms measure?

Who knows? It doesn't really matter *what* they measure! But they
clearly are measuring *something*, or they wouldn't be wearing them,
right? That they have no concept of Earthly hours is irrelevent. Just
like the lengths of their beards are measuring *something*, even though
they don't know about inches or meters or any of our Earthly
measurements of length.

...
Mike




What our watches measure is "something", it could just be some
undiscovered quality/law of matter, and that is useful--my appointment
keeping stands.

However, when you start plugging these things into mathematical "laws"
and NOT caring EXACTLY what they are about, it is insane, now it is
useful--and one is best using such 'til better comes along ... BUT, you
NEVER forget you really DON'T KNOW or DON'T UNDERSTAND what is really
happening and are only substituting "magic numbers" so as to get some
type of usable results ...

Today there are many things we use without understanding them, this is
good, but only a fool says, "Don't worry about what is really going on,
this will get us where we are going." Because, without always searching
the truths, we will fail to make the new discoveries and start accepting
our "made up formulas" as reality.

There are many examples we need to look further, only the fools stand
saying we know it all, we cannot even state we absolutely know photons
exist! (however, allowing that they do gives us usable theory, for the
moment ...)

JS