Skepticism and Critical Thinking

I want to encourage people to ask questions and to not just take someone's word for it.  So, why would people want to question everything?  

As information becomes more precise, it reduces the graininess of the picture, and then the unexplainable becomes mundane.  i.e. the Face on Mars, any Bigfoot photo or video, UFO pictures, ghost pictures.  New-Age baloney phenomena are helped by their vague or even non-existent explanations.  There’s nothing specific to the claim, so you are free to fill in the blanks with whatever allows it to make sense to you.  Only upon closer examination do you find that the phenomenon has no kind of evidence or logic to support it.

So, what’s a good way to discern whether or not someone has a legitimate claim?  The first thing you can do is ask them how they know their claim is true.  If they refuse to even answer that question, then the claim should be treated with suspicion.   If they give an answer, they’ve given you a place to start digging.  Question everything.  Oftentimes, people who are trying to convince you of something that is not true will blend their falsehoods with truths or things that sound like the truth.  They will even take the findings of cutting edge science out of context and try to fit it with their pet ideas.

Skepticism doesn’t mean to believe nothing.  Instead, it means to question anything that lacks sufficient evidence.  It’s a way of thinking that will protect you from being bamboozled by slick speeches or fancy advertising.  The truth is not afraid to be found.  Those hiding the truth will try to block your way or misdirect your attention.  They will do anything to not be found out.  And frequently, they will ignore any contrary evidence as if you never brought it up.  It pains them to be confronted with evidence that what they believe is wrong.  They would rather cover their eyes and put their fingers in their ears than admit a mistake.  

A skeptic is not afraid to admit mistakes.  A skeptic delights in being proven wrong, because they just learned something new and amazing.  Every day is a day to learn; a day to remove the blinders; a day to pull aside the veil and see reality as it truly presents itself.