You know, I really like it when people think twice about the “current” state of science. Thinking “I don’t think that’s true. So I will check and verify” is a great thing and most people should do that. Thinking the earth is flat is fine - if you then go to verify.
The problem I have is if there is PLENTY of proof of things being a certain way that you just choose to ignore. Then you become an idiot.
“Current” science is a bit of a stretch, like a couple thousand years of stretching. Eratosthenes showed the earth was round and calculated its circumference to an astonishing precision using research and fairly simple trigonometry. He died 2,219 years ago.
“known by scientists for a long time” doesn’t necessarily mean true. Medical science believed in the four humours and thought most disease was caused by an imbalance in bile, blood and phlegm for like 1200 years before being replaced by the idea that it was actually miasma and stinky air.
Germ theory’s claim that tiny monsters are eating your insides, maybe like invisible poisonous insects or miniature demons and you need to wash them off your hands - Sounded Batshit crazy by comparison.
Questioning long-held assumptions and challenging scientific norms is a good thing, but every human has a grift that they’re vulnerable to and for some people, even smart, sciencey people, that grift is conspiracy alt science anti vax flat earth hollow earth aliens built the pyramids and the government doesn’t want you to know the truth.
Sure, but with “current” I mean the current understanding of science. We know the earth is round, but not because we discovered it, but because it’s the general consensus that is taught, barely anyone doubts it. Trying to - let’s call it “rediscover” - the scientific status quo is something I do like because it might always be the case that the people before were wrong. This is how new discoveries are made and I think that is a great thing. As an example, nobody believed that continents did actually move, and Wegener was ridiculed because he had no sure way to proof it, but at some point, people had the way to proof that he was actually right.
People like RFK confuse skepticism with going against conventional thinking. Flerfers and anti-vaxxers and other conspiracy theorists aren’t skeptical, because then they’d be open-minded about evidence. But they think they’re being skeptical because they’re going against the status quo.
Unfortunately bucking the status quo becomes an identity issue, and not only does evidence not matter anymore, but grifters come out to prey on people who just want to be skeptical.
You know, I really like it when people think twice about the “current” state of science. Thinking “I don’t think that’s true. So I will check and verify” is a great thing and most people should do that. Thinking the earth is flat is fine - if you then go to verify.
The problem I have is if there is PLENTY of proof of things being a certain way that you just choose to ignore. Then you become an idiot.
“Current” science is a bit of a stretch, like a couple thousand years of stretching. Eratosthenes showed the earth was round and calculated its circumference to an astonishing precision using research and fairly simple trigonometry. He died 2,219 years ago.
“known by scientists for a long time” doesn’t necessarily mean true. Medical science believed in the four humours and thought most disease was caused by an imbalance in bile, blood and phlegm for like 1200 years before being replaced by the idea that it was actually miasma and stinky air.
Germ theory’s claim that tiny monsters are eating your insides, maybe like invisible poisonous insects or miniature demons and you need to wash them off your hands - Sounded Batshit crazy by comparison.
Questioning long-held assumptions and challenging scientific norms is a good thing, but every human has a grift that they’re vulnerable to and for some people, even smart, sciencey people, that grift is conspiracy alt science anti vax flat earth hollow earth aliens built the pyramids and the government doesn’t want you to know the truth.
Sure, but with “current” I mean the current understanding of science. We know the earth is round, but not because we discovered it, but because it’s the general consensus that is taught, barely anyone doubts it. Trying to - let’s call it “rediscover” - the scientific status quo is something I do like because it might always be the case that the people before were wrong. This is how new discoveries are made and I think that is a great thing. As an example, nobody believed that continents did actually move, and Wegener was ridiculed because he had no sure way to proof it, but at some point, people had the way to proof that he was actually right.
People like RFK confuse skepticism with going against conventional thinking. Flerfers and anti-vaxxers and other conspiracy theorists aren’t skeptical, because then they’d be open-minded about evidence. But they think they’re being skeptical because they’re going against the status quo.
Unfortunately bucking the status quo becomes an identity issue, and not only does evidence not matter anymore, but grifters come out to prey on people who just want to be skeptical.
A conspiracy theorist with strong evidence is just a leftist.
Seriously, fuck the CIA for fake vaccines in Pakistan.
As in, conspiracies are real, but it’s the 1%.
Ah, ok. Didn’t know much reading-between-the-lines I needed to do there lol
Yeah, that’s the kind of conspiracy theorists I don’t like lmao.