>>12
If OBE's were more reliable, easier to learn and master, maybe, yeah. That particular line of skepticism rests on OBE's being far more controllable, and any information gleaned from them far, far more reliable than it actually is. For example, one wednesday night, I leave my body, and watch a pair of my friends go to a particular bottle shop, where they buy some particular drinks, then mess around with an abandoned trolley in the parking lot behind it, with another friend that turns up. They get yelled at and run off. When I see them on saturday, they mention the incident, and i ask a couple of questions. I discover that Every detail was correct, only it happened with a several hour time difference than what i thought. Another day, I leave my body, and find myself off in some bizzarre fairy land, with this strange being resembling a giant retarded pokemon flying about. I decide to leave and try to make my way into a real world projection, but get distracted by some pretty trees, etc etc. Another time, I hang around in my house, near where my body is, and it seems to represent what is actualy happening around my body. I see my mother doing the laundry, or something. When I wake up and try to confirm what i saw, I find all details were wrong.
>>13
If the whole idea did rest on that chain of implausible assertions, I don't think anyone without severe mental issues could possibly accept it.
What the whole idea does rest on, is the concept of the non-physical universe, and, in relation to your point about full mental function while brain is dead, non physical 'mind' and self. Google 'astral plane' if you're not familiar with the basic idea. There are various view points which provide explanations for these kinds of things, generaly less ridiculous than ' my brain was working, even though it was dead!' Also, death related OBE's are far rarer than intentional OBE's. Of course, i'm certainly not going to argue with you or anyone else this can be explained scientifically or proven in anything nearing an academically acceptable manner. It can't.
The only things I can say to back myself up is that people who know me regard me as an intelligent person, and that I have had various experiences which cannot be explained by science or, by a very, vastly long shot, coincidence. Or drugs, or mental problems, lol. It's pretty much endless new age metaphysical babble, completely and utterly unprovable in any sort of scientific way.
Haha post way to long and rambling, looks like i've forgotten how much i can crap on about this stuff. Twas amusing.