RAZD writes:
Just because you still don't get it doesn't make it bonkers, it just makes your view limited and narrow-minded. You focused on your definitions as a shield and missed the wider application\discussion. That is why I introduced\tried a different way of looking at the issue ... which you just rejected.
Of course I 'got' what you were saying - it was hardly original. Just like now, you see a post about open-minded skepticism and immediately think that its special - only you, the writer and a few like minded individuals 'get it'. And yet, it seems obvious to others here that this is just, well, normal. Similarly only you 'get' confirmation bias and particular logical fallacies. Really? When you're on the subject of 'hard science' like radio carbon dating you're brilliant - when it comes to human beliefs and behaviours, you're lost. You're as puzzled as Spock, watching a human kiss.
Its time you turned this very special mind of yours in on yourself and really open it up.
So, again, in terms of the topic, of being (or not being) an open-minded skeptic, you do agree that position (C) is the logical end position when there is insufficient information to make an evidence informed decision, and that the answer is "I don't know" ... unless of course you insist on making a choice based on your (choose to be closed minded) opinion.
No. I reject the entire proposition that the human mind is open to such a reductionist approach. Rationalism and the scientific method has proved to be a fantastic mechanism for understanding simple realities such as the age of rock, how organisms change over time, how to confirm a medical process is efficacious or harmful, but so far it can't begin to tell me why I love the smell of wild garlic. (Don't try to google that for a generic link - it too can't make the associations.)
By ignoring the human condition and how people actually work in real life, you are failing to be open minded and sceptical and missing an enormously important part of life - the irrational. And in doing so, you are fooling yourself and are the perfect example of how not to be open minded and sceptical.
You believe in God without evidence! And, yes, I do understand why you say that, but do you? Really? But that's irrational isn't it?
Je suis Charlie. Je suis Ahmed. Je suis Juif.
Life, don't talk to me about life - Marvin the Paranoid Android
"Science adjusts it's views based on what's observed.
Faith is the denial of observation so that Belief can be preserved."
- Tim Minchin, in his beat poem, Storm.