tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3145618750613855559.post1056174006982180259..comments2023-09-25T01:24:16.050-07:00Comments on Eddie Current’s Blog: Conspiracy Manipulators, Pseudo-Critical Thinkers & Other FraudsEdward Currenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772053738612119871noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3145618750613855559.post-61629031516395604132015-02-23T20:28:08.398-08:002015-02-23T20:28:08.398-08:00Just a reminder to everyone: Being a skeptic doesn...Just a reminder to everyone: Being a skeptic doesn't just mean being skeptical about the arguments questioning mainstream narratives, but being skeptical of the mainstream narratives themselves !<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3145618750613855559.post-42057802983134495452013-11-10T16:07:23.908-08:002013-11-10T16:07:23.908-08:00Well it's telling that conspiracy manipulators...Well it's telling that conspiracy manipulators have to pretend themselves to be conspirators, and leave phony messages like this, in a manipulative attempt to keep these delusions alive. It's like pathetic desperate Christians leaving messages like, "This is God and I am real, prepare to spend an eternity in hell." (Of course, I apologize if the comment was facetious.)Edward Currenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06772053738612119871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3145618750613855559.post-81589079147540886622013-11-08T21:33:59.569-08:002013-11-08T21:33:59.569-08:00In your account you should find adequate payment, ...In your account you should find adequate payment, Mr. Current. Keep up the good work.<br /><br />And I don't have to tell you - don't let anyone else in on this private line.The Illuminatinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3145618750613855559.post-41529043307259283842013-10-03T02:18:00.166-07:002013-10-03T02:18:00.166-07:00I think you hit on the main reason for the rise in...I think you hit on the main reason for the rise in viral conspiracies, the lack of critical thinking. Of course this failure of critical thought can also explain so much of the other mind boggling things that are occurring.<br /><br />One that goes hand in hand with viral conspiracies is fanatic politics. Those people at the extremes of the ideological spectrum that have an all my way or it just isn't good enough attitude. Most of what they say can be quickly dispatched with a minimum of critical thought but it appears that so many do not possess the ability. <br /><br />Another realm is the state of our public schools. With the introduction of standardized testing and teaching-to-the-test our schools have been failing to inspire critical thought in children. This coupled with the net's instant access to information (or more often mis-information) many people do not feel the need to think for themselves.<br /><br />Then we move to science and a subject you touched on in another blog, the apparent inability of modern science to reexamine the core of hypotheses that do not appear to be going anywhere or to even entertain theories that challenge the establishment. (I also found Lee Smolin's book enlightening) I think that even though this covers many brilliant people it is still a failure of critical thinking.<br /><br />And of course the big one: Religion. No need to rehash this one.<br /><br />I feel that the absence of critical thought is one of the biggest threats mankind faces today.LightShadow62https://www.blogger.com/profile/00031408068839572130noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3145618750613855559.post-7739779662787916442013-09-28T14:23:57.893-07:002013-09-28T14:23:57.893-07:00"In the same way that the sociopath masters t..."In the same way that the sociopath masters the art of superficial charm, the conspiracy manipulator -- completely oblivious to their own intellectual dishonesty -- masters the art of superficial inquisitiveness."<br /><br />Absolutely loved that comparison, you really nailed it. It would be great if hardcore liberal and conservative conspiracy theorists would apply their spectacular imagination and "inquisitiveness" to something worthwhile. <br /><br />The worst part is that some higher education institutions who should be at the forefront of efforts to teach critical thinking often hire sociologists and philosophers who seem to devote hours of their time to defend conspiracy theorizing (of the kind you describe) as a legitimate way of engaging in public debate (e.g. see G Husting and M Orr, "Dangerous Machinery: 'Conspiracy Theorist' as a Transpersonal Strategy of Exclusion", Symbolic Interaction Vol. 30 (2007), pp. 127-150). <br /><br />Their authority as (tenured) college professors leads their students with conservative/liberal/libertarian/anarchist preconceptions to think that they don't need solid evidence or basic logic to back their arguments, as the fact that they are challenging "the establishment" is evidence enough of their critical ability.<br /> Damian Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05750536797587567430noreply@blogger.com