Horst, I agree with all your points. Actually if you read my other pieces, you'd realize that the impermanence of Self is a point I make frequently. Again, in the matter of "science making itself arbiter of what it is out there," I frequently make the same point that all scientific research take place within the dominant paradigm of the day. Thomas Kuhn made this point way back in 1964 in his groundbreaking work The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. If you think eggplant is an animal, then its seeds may come across as cancerous growth but not seeds. Just wanted to remind you that we have more points in common than otherwise, as witnessed by what I've written earlier. Appreciate your thoughtful feedback.