What Can a Skeptic Believe?

Skepticism is simply a reasonable reluctance (or inability) to believe something that doesn't seem to make sense, unless sufficient evidence shows it to be true. Even if something seems to make sense -- especially something important -- skepticism might move one to seek evidence anyway.

Skepticism doesn't imply that one should refuse to believe. On the contrary, refusing to believe something would be as irrational as refusing to question it. Skeptics are rational people who must believe what reason and/or evidence tells them is true.

There are many things a skeptic can believe in. Not just because he or she wants to, but because we can experience them for ourselves. Or because there is convincing evidence. Or simply because they make sense.

For example, I believe in those personal, inner, largely subjective qualities that I can experience, and that often produce powerful external effects as well. Such things as love and affection; joy, pleasure, and fun; peace; friendship; and loyalty.

As Jesus is reported to have used the analogy of the wind to explain the "holy spirit" -- you can't see these things; but you can feel them, and you can see their results. Most of us can experience these things for ourselves, to greater or lesser degrees.

I believe in honesty and integrity, without which civilization could not exist. Not that anybody is totally honest all the time or has perfect integrity; but, at least to some degree, we must be able to trust those with whom we share our planet and our lives. Fortunately, most people show themselves to be worthy of our trust most of the time and in most ways. Despite the fact that there are still thieves, murderers, liars, and other dishonest and untrustworthy people all over the place, there is also enough honesty and integrity that our whole economic system, for example, is based on it. It's probably reasonable to believe that most people we come in contact with are more good than bad most of the time.

We complain about corrupt government, but most of us accept the promise on our money that says, "This note is legal tender for all debts public and private." That is -- at least to that extent -- we trust in the integrity of our government, and the people who run it for us.

For another example, when a bank issues a credit card to a customer, it trusts the customer to behave honestly enough to pay whatever bills he or she runs up on it. There is no total trust, because they know in advance that some people will never pay. If they knew who those people were, they certainly wouldn't issue them credit cards. If none of us was honest enough to do our best to pay our debts, how long could our society survive?

I believe in limited, but very extensive, freedom. What I do privately when nobody else is seriously affected is nobody else's business, and I should be free to do it. On the other hand, if I drive my car 95 mph down the residential street where your children are playing near the curb; you and they may be seriously affected. That makes it your business, and I should not be free to do it.

This is similar to saying that we should generally mind our own business and let other people mind theirs. Or, as others have expressed it, "your freedom to swing your fist ends before it makes contact with my nose." It just makes sense.

I believe in the scientific method and information gained by it, which may be referred to as "scientific information." The scientific method consists of a group of principles and procedures too lengthy to adequately address here, so I've written more about it on a separate page. For now, let's just summarize by saying that it consists of observing a phenomenon, recording and analyzing those observations, thinking of one or more ideas to explain what you've observed, and experimenting to find out which (if any) of your ideas is most nearly correct. The ideas (known as hypotheses) can come from anywhere, but they are never accepted as fact until they are demonstrated as such by repeated experiments.

This scientific method is designed to generate any number of hypotheses, but to reject those that don't work. When followed rigorously, this prevents most unfounded ideas from being accepted as truth (or Truth). It makes sense, and there is overwhelming evidence that it works very well. It has more than doubled the average human lifespan and brought us almost unbelievable technological progress in the past two centuries during which it has been implemented extensively.

I believe in technology, which can be thought of as applied scientific information. Technology, in and of itself, is neither good nor bad. But technology provides power to do good (or bad) things. In the hands of good and capable people, it is the only hope for mankind to "live long and prosper" as a species. It makes sense, and we can see the evidence all around us. Without much of it, most of our ancestors lived short, miserable lives and died painfully by the age of 40. At some times and places, average life expectancy was even a lot shorter than that.

I believe in the power of reason and logic. However, we are not nearly as smart as many of us would like to think. Consider how long it took our ancestors to invent a useful steam engine. A primitive steam engine was built in ancient Greece about the time of Jesus, and used to power a useless contraption that was nothing more than a very dangerous toy. Yet we made no other use of it for eighteen centuries, until the scientific method became reasonably commonplace.

Because we're not as smart as we like to think, our reason and logic are most effective only when tempered by the scientific method. In combination, reason, logic, and the scientific method took our species from the horse and buggy to the moon in a single human lifetime between 1900 and 1970. This is because the scientific method actually increases the effective intelligence of an individual or group, by focusing it in ways that have been tried and proven to work well.

I believe in compassion based on empathy. If I can "feel your pain," then I naturally want to help you stop hurting.

Jesus said that "the truth shall make you free." Somebody else said, "Maybe so, but it can cause you an awful lot of trouble first." I am not sure about the former statement, but I have learned by experience that the latter one can certainly be true.

Nevertheless, I have a (possibly irrational) desire to know the truth about the world, the universe, and the life and other things therein.

If it was all designed and built by a master creator -- a god -- then I want to know that. On the other hand, if it was not, then I want to know and understand that. I have found no convincing evidence that such a "god" exists or ever existed.

I believe in imagination. Albert Einstein has been quoted as saying it was more powerful than knowledge. I'm not sure about that, but it definitely can be pretty powerful and wonderful.

I believe good, honest people of great integrity will sometimes disagree about terribly important things. This can be extremely harmful to both of them, as well as other people. Regardless, it seems we are not all going to agree about everything.

I believe in electricity, math, sunsets and sunrises, beautiful women, innocent babies, evolution of species by natural selection and other means, viruses and bacteria, atoms and molecules, magnetism and gravity.

But I said a few minutes ago that I believe "we should mind our own business and let other people mind theirs." I think maybe this means -- among other things -- that I have no right to expect my friends or family or anyone else to share my obsession for objective truth. Or my beliefs.

If your faith in a god (either real or imaginary) will help you feel better in the face of grief or fear or everyday life, then I should probably leave you alone with your faith. And I will, under most circumstances and places.

But not here. Be warned.

This page was last updated 08/21/09 04:43 PM.

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