Episode 21 – Pseudo-Skepticism
Howdy Theoryologists. Today we are discussing the broad brush stroke term “skepticism”, and specifically the misuse and mislabeling of a falsely skeptical approach that hides an objective of debunking. See, underlying any topic we have had, or might have in the future on Conspiracy Theoryology, is the skeptical perspective. That point of view which says “I’m not just taking this at face value,” and rightly so. There would be no such thing as a conspiracy theory, or alternative belief, if things always were, or they weren’t, in our minds. In fact, there wouldn’t be much of anything if we never questioned the truth of what we know at that moment. There’d be no advancement. No discovery. No need for proof. Fortunately, that’s not the case. Skepticism is quite popular. It’s even trendy to consider yourself a skeptic. This is why I decided it needed its own devoted episode, otherwise it just goes piecemeal into every episode, and never adequately.
Skepticism is a part of our everyday lives, and something that most would consider pretty healthy. No one would debate the need to be a bit skeptical of the safety railing at a scenic lookout along a mountain path, or the need to be skeptical of the expiration date before taking a gulp of milk from the carton in the refrigerator when you aren’t sure how long it’s been there. Yeah, skepticism is healthy, but that’s not where skepticism causes an issue. In fact, it’s rarely called skepticism. That’s just safety consciousness, or good sense. No, skepticism has become an almost professional moniker for those that question beliefs, theories and experiences that fly in the face of mainstream accepted reality, as well as those that call into question our understanding of the world and how we live and interact. Skepticism, as a way of thinking, and “Skeptic” as a title, has been appropriated almost exclusively by those that ascribe to a mainstream position of scientific skeptical inquiry.
In reality, though, skepticism has an identity crisis.
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Music is by adamhenrygarcia.bandcamp.com
Links:
https://www.theepochtimes.com/what-is-unhealthy-skepticism_603148.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudoskepticism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcello_Truzzi
http://amasci.com/pathsk2.html
https://atlantisrisingmagazine.com/article/pathological-skepticism/
https://scottbarrykaufman.com/podcast/science-skepticism-michael-shermer/
https://www.csicop.org/si/show/proper_criticism
https://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/sociopolitica/esp_sociopol_mindcon57.htm
https://debunkingdenialism.com/scientific-skepticism/
https://www.energypsych.org/page/Debunking_article
https://theethicalskeptic.com/2014/04/14/the-appeal-to-skepticism-fallacy/
https://files.turri.org/research/Appeal.pdf
http://ilj.law.indiana.edu/articles/15-Zamir-Ritov-Teichman.pdf