I don’t know about anyone else, but lately, it seems that no matter the topic when I’m having a discussion with another person, it appears we end up talking past each other. It’s as if one of us is avoiding whatever is being discussed entirely. Not that the other person replies talking about dishwashers when I have brought up microwaves – they’re both appliances – but they have entirely different functions, and even pretending we’re talking about the same thing sometimes gives me a headache. When this occurs, I try to think of the possibilities as to why and I always seem to settle on at least three: The other person has no idea what I’m talking about; I haven’t been stated clearly enough what I’m getting at; They’re completely disinterested in what I have to say and only bring something up related, to mollify me long enough to walk away.

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I’ve written in these pages that I believe that everyone is a skeptic. I think that’s true without exception. No matter the walk in life, there are people that are skeptical about many different subjects and it has nothing to do with religious belief or those of us that are non-religious. We all certainly have our own biases, as individuals or in certain groups, but that doesn’t nullify skepticism. In fact, /i would challenge anyone to find a person that isn’t skeptical about something, whether it is Bigfoot, or Ancient Aliens, or anywhere in between, we all have our doubts about something we read or hear about at one time or another.

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Is it possible for someone to be “too skeptical”? Or as I have referred to it as being “hyper-skeptical”? I’m not sure simply because my understanding is that someone that is too or hyper-skeptical is someone thst questions everything, even the most simple, obvious of assertions. I’ve never met anyone like that. I’m not saying that person doesn’t exist, just I have no experience in interacting with anyone like that. I’ve certainly met people that were, in areas, more skeptical than I am, but then, I may have been the same with them. Is there a line to be drawn or is it just a personal perception that we may have of another person? I tend to lean toward the latter.

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People are becoming more skeptical everyday. Not that those people would necessarily claim to be skeptics in any definition of the word, but all any of have to do is talk to our colleagues, friends, and neighbors to get a sense of where we are now in our trust of what we hear or read. A perfect example is the [trust in the media], which is at an all-time low in the United States. This should be concerning for everyone, since this is the way that we receive news about our government, society, and the world. When people become skeptical the news, we have a problem. These people that produce and report on affairs of the day have the widest reach into our everyday lives and when we become unable to trust what we’re being told, that should not only be a wakeup call to the media themselves, but for us as well.

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Gretchen and I have been discussing what being a skeptic is and what it means. Her latest response to me is here.  In the post she responded  to, there is a discussion about confirmation bias and how I believe that everyone exhibits this bias at one time or another. But bias, I believe,  goes beyond that. We may certainly read or hear something that confirms a belief we have held, but where does that come from? I have no background in any of the neuro-sciences, but I think that, from life experience, just knowing other people, that there is an explanation.

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Gretchen, over a Skeptic Review, posted an excellent piece, appropriately titled, What Is Skepticism? It a great introduction that details not only the general definition of skepticism, but also breaks out the different kinds of skepticism. I don’t think that the state of skepticism is necessarily imperiled though, even if there are those that have a certain view of those defined that way. I may be wrong, but I have never known anyone, a skeptic, that goes around introducing themselves that way. As I mentioned in my introductory piece, we are all skeptical at one level or another. Where I think I may agree with those that criticize us, is that there may be a contingent of people claiming to be skeptics, that don’t actually exemplify that status.

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When I first started this blog, I had no idea how to describe it. Yes, I am both a conservative and a skeptic, but if I just called it that, as I eventuslly did, what would that mean t others? I went back and forth but finally decided on my first instinct: Conservative Skeptic. I thought at the time it would raise a lot of questions of potential readers, and then thought that it was a good thing if it did. Most people, at least those that I know, don’t see theat there’s anyway someone that claims to be a conservative could actually be a skeptic as well. At least in the terms that are widely utilized by some. But I am. I am both and for even a few today, they are unable to understand how a person may be conservative and skeptical at the same time. Reread that. Yes, it’s true. Even for most conservatives I know, I’m not considered a conservative simply because  I am an atheist and I’m told, often, that a pillar of conservatism is belief in God. Which pillar is that exactly?

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