Comments on: Real Skepticism http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/ Pondering the South African Memesphere - Looking for the Good in Everything Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:43:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: monster http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-877 monster Fri, 03 Aug 2007 14:42:02 +0000 http://thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-877 Die 3e jaars wat ek demi kyk baie skepties na my... They smell fear. Die 3e jaars wat ek demi kyk baie skepties na my… They smell fear.

]]> By: Hugo http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-871 Hugo Fri, 03 Aug 2007 12:19:05 +0000 http://thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-871 Hehe, evil. You point me at a book, rather than just giving me the easy answer (w.r.t. skeptic vs sceptic). I will add it to my list of books I may want to read some day. Thanks! Hehe, evil. You point me at a book, rather than just giving me the easy answer (w.r.t. skeptic vs sceptic). I will add it to my list of books I may want to read some day. Thanks!

]]> By: monster http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-869 monster Fri, 03 Aug 2007 11:52:48 +0000 http://thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-869 I have lots of fun playing devil's advocate... But I usually make it clear somewhere along the line that I'm just poking around to make things more interesting. If someone is being the skeptic in the conversation just to sound like a deep thinker, I tend to ignore the blimp and talk to someone else. Arguing with a drunk person is just as difficult. A very cool book to read is "The Alphabet" by... O gats nou kan ek nie onthou nie! Anyway, it's about each letter of the alphabet and traces it's source and meanings from the beginning of written language. Very cool and very interesting - especially clears up a lot of things like "k vs c"; also cool to know that Julius Ceaser was spoken "yulius keiser". Woohoo demi-tyd! :( I have lots of fun playing devil’s advocate… But I usually make it clear somewhere along the line that I’m just poking around to make things more interesting. If someone is being the skeptic in the conversation just to sound like a deep thinker, I tend to ignore the blimp and talk to someone else. Arguing with a drunk person is just as difficult.
A very cool book to read is “The Alphabet” by… O gats nou kan ek nie onthou nie! Anyway, it’s about each letter of the alphabet and traces it’s source and meanings from the beginning of written language. Very cool and very interesting – especially clears up a lot of things like “k vs c”; also cool to know that Julius Ceaser was spoken “yulius keiser”.
Woohoo demi-tyd! :(

]]> By: Hugo http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-823 Hugo Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:51:14 +0000 http://thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-823 Yes, skepticism can be fun, critical thinking can be healthy, but it can indeed be an absolute pain. This post was inspired by a "skeptic" that challenged a whole bunch of things. And I sit and wonder how many people listen to what he says and then decides to agree, wanting to also "sound smart". Whereas, being a little skeptical of his skepticism allows you to easily see a bunch of holes in his arguments. The things he mentioned were things like seatbelt safety, income gaps, water shortages, global warming, aid to poor countries, and some other things. He raised some interesting points, but his lack of thoroughness and inclusion of a number of absurdities gave me more of a "conspiracy theorist" impression, than a "careful thinker / questioner". From there then this post. ;-) Let me rather not rip the guy, who I'm leaving anonymous, any further. (Cheap gimmicks to make people pick his side... claiming discrimination and shunning by other people and the like... uh... oops, I said I'd stop. Hehe.) Yes, skepticism can be fun, critical thinking can be healthy, but it can indeed be an absolute pain. This post was inspired by a “skeptic” that challenged a whole bunch of things. And I sit and wonder how many people listen to what he says and then decides to agree, wanting to also “sound smart”. Whereas, being a little skeptical of his skepticism allows you to easily see a bunch of holes in his arguments.

The things he mentioned were things like seatbelt safety, income gaps, water shortages, global warming, aid to poor countries, and some other things. He raised some interesting points, but his lack of thoroughness and inclusion of a number of absurdities gave me more of a “conspiracy theorist” impression, than a “careful thinker / questioner”. From there then this post. ;-)

Let me rather not rip the guy, who I’m leaving anonymous, any further. (Cheap gimmicks to make people pick his side… claiming discrimination and shunning by other people and the like… uh… oops, I said I’d stop. Hehe.)

]]> By: Wendy http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-822 Wendy Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:21:27 +0000 http://thinktoomuch.net/2007/07/21/real-skepticism/#comment-822 Haha. My vote is for "skeptic" as well :) My room mate at the moment loves being skeptical. Sometimes I'll say something, and I know deep inside she agrees with me, but she'll intentionally go against what I say or take an opposite approach just because. She's even admitted that she tends to root for the opposite of what people are saying/talking about. I have no idea why. It's annoying sometimes actually. It's fine to be skeptical of someone or to take the other side for argument's sake, but to do it "just because" seems rather silly to me. Haha. My vote is for “skeptic” as well :)

My room mate at the moment loves being skeptical. Sometimes I’ll say something, and I know deep inside she agrees with me, but she’ll intentionally go against what I say or take an opposite approach just because. She’s even admitted that she tends to root for the opposite of what people are saying/talking about. I have no idea why. It’s annoying sometimes actually. It’s fine to be skeptical of someone or to take the other side for argument’s sake, but to do it “just because” seems rather silly to me.

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