The Smug Baldy Speaks

Someone posted a stupid comment yesterday in my post about comedian Sylvia Browne’s horrible accuracy for her 2006 predictions, and I wondered why it was that my claims were treated with such disdain, while Sylvia’s wrong predictions (like the one that Arnold Schwarzenegger would lose his re-election bid) were glossed over. Then it occurred to me: Some people are really, mind-bogglingly stupid. I laughed for a bit, but I knew there had to be more than simple stupidity. And there is: Part of the problem with many believers is that they mistake healthy skepticism for something impolite, or worse, something bad.

No no no, says I. Skepticism is your friend, especially in a world awash with kookiness and inanity, preposterous claims, and a countless host willing to consider the unbelievable as so many Idol fans did when they thought that Sanjaya might have talent. In such a world, you can’t really function on anything more than the most primitive level without the ability to filter that noise through a critical, skeptical mind.

For those of you who don’t go to the Skeptics Society website on a regular basis, you can get a great introduction to skepticism – as well as some insight into why people (not you, of course) believe weird things from Dr. Michael Shermer, the President of the Skeptics Society in this 2005 talk.