Why do you equate not believing the Earth is flat with believing it to be round? And I don't want to read a bunch of copypasta; if I wanted to read that I would have searched Google for "proof of round earth" instead of making this thread. I want to hear from REers, in their own words, why they believe the Earth to be round. That is to say, what has convinced them so strongly that it is round that they (for the most part) are unwilling to even consider the FE model.
I really don't need anymore reasons to accept the "Round Earth world view" than the fact that a "Flat Earth world view" has been proven wrong millennia ago and is still being proven wrong on a daily basis.
How is it being proven wrong on a daily basis? By astronomers for instance, or by the regular launches of rockets and astronauts (here in Belgium we've got "our own" Frank De Winne; he's to stay in the International Space Station for half a year) into space and all the data (yes, including pictures (!)) they gather and send back to Earth, not to mention the several space probes that have been exploring our solar system for several decades now and have given us a massive amount of new knowledge about our own "little corner in space".
Oh, and how about the Hubble Telescope. Magnificent images of deep space the little gizmo has given us, images that clearly show us that the stars are not only 3100 miles away, but tens / thousands / millions / billions of light years.
Of course, the difference between you and me is: I believe that all of this is really happening, that astronomers are not idiots that can't even detect through their telescopes that the stars are only 3100 miles away and am fascinated by it / by their work, you believe that all of this is part of a huge charade / conspiracy that is meant to hide the true shape of the Earth from us.
It is not possible to know anything for certain. To think we can and do is not only arrogant, but also narrow-minded.
To think that we can't know anything for certain is nothing more than philosophical masturbation / prattle. And it's certainly not arrogant to say that some things (and actually quite many things) can be known for certain.
If pictures taken by space probes, of which many people have whitnessed the launch, show me that Earth is a globe, then I take the roudness (or "oblate spheroidness") of our home world as a fact that cannot be doubted any longer.
To question these facts just for the sake of questioning them or because you like a conspiracy-theory better, is useless - and arrogant - skepticism.
A simpler example: I know for certain that I have been born once upon a time and that eventually I will die.
I know for certain that the clothes I'm currently wearing have been made out of cotton and some polyester.
I know for certain that clouds have been formed by vaporization of maynly sea water.
And so on...
Again: to say that you can never know these things for certain is useless philosophical babbling in my oppinion. Yes, you may call me arrogant and narrow minded on this; so be it. I'm not going to waste my time on endlessly questioning and doubting everything I learn and see.
Sometimes you just have to accept things as facts, and move on. Like "the round Earth" for instance. Accept that science has proven the planet to be round, and move on with your life.
Libraries contain proof of a round Earth? Tell me, what observation can you make in a library that proves to you the Earth is round?
No observation.
Simply the reading of many books on cosmology and geography for instance, two of my biggest personal interest (next to my main one: history).
Or next to books, the viewing of many beautiful documentaries about our planet and about the cosmos. Give those a shot! It's defenitely worth a view!
So there you have it. Some of the reasons why I prefer the "round Earth world view" over "the flat Earth world view".
If you think those are lousy, narrow-minded reasons, then so be it. They are enough for me.
Regards,