This idea itself is more dangerous and irrational.
Certain worldviews spread virally not because they are true, but because they untestable and because they connect with elemental but fundamentally not rational aspects of our human biological makeup. We believe them not because they make sense or are probable, but because they exploit the way our brains work to overcome our capacity to think them through. In most cases this follows similar patterns, such as ideas that implicitly discredit our normal mechanisms for rationally judging thoughts, or far reaching explanations of that make sense of a confusing and increasingly complex world.
It would be really nice if we lived in a simple world where you could just let your brain engage with whatever whenever, where we were all strong willed philosophers of the human condition, bold pioneers investigating the very nature of truth, but that just aint it. We are all just people trying to live, imperfect creatures, and engaging with things we know will trick our brain in the name of intellectual honesty is just as dumb as shooting up heroin because doing so isn't morally wrong. Your not gonna go to a special world that other people are too afraid to discover, you are going to become a heroin addict. Neither are you going to help out your heroin addict friend by trying it out to better understand where he's coming from. It is uncomfortable and painful, but there are classes of ideas that we cannot afford to engage with, regardless if it makes us feel close-minded or not.
PM_me_FDR t1_ix8chfz wrote
Reply to The truth about conspiracy theories - We must be open and critical towards all theories. Dismissing putative conspiracy theories while failing to properly interrogate pseudoscience dangerous and irrational. by IAI_Admin
This idea itself is more dangerous and irrational.
Certain worldviews spread virally not because they are true, but because they untestable and because they connect with elemental but fundamentally not rational aspects of our human biological makeup. We believe them not because they make sense or are probable, but because they exploit the way our brains work to overcome our capacity to think them through. In most cases this follows similar patterns, such as ideas that implicitly discredit our normal mechanisms for rationally judging thoughts, or far reaching explanations of that make sense of a confusing and increasingly complex world.
It would be really nice if we lived in a simple world where you could just let your brain engage with whatever whenever, where we were all strong willed philosophers of the human condition, bold pioneers investigating the very nature of truth, but that just aint it. We are all just people trying to live, imperfect creatures, and engaging with things we know will trick our brain in the name of intellectual honesty is just as dumb as shooting up heroin because doing so isn't morally wrong. Your not gonna go to a special world that other people are too afraid to discover, you are going to become a heroin addict. Neither are you going to help out your heroin addict friend by trying it out to better understand where he's coming from. It is uncomfortable and painful, but there are classes of ideas that we cannot afford to engage with, regardless if it makes us feel close-minded or not.