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Bruce writes:
"My name is Bruce and I'm an skeptic. Debunker. Nasty Noisy Negativist. Along with any other four-letter-word used in the paranormal community to describe people like me. Though often employed as pejoratives to dismiss without thought those who challenge claims of the paranormal, I wear them as a brand of pride. That is what I am, a skeptic, a critical-thinker (by definition, a skeptic is a critical-thinker; that isn't to say a believer is not a critical-thinker, far from it. But that is a subject for another column), and I see no shame in it."It's lovely to see more skeptical, critical thinkers attempting (and I hope not futilely) to show that skepticism isn't the terrible, horrible abomination many within the paranormal believe.
Keep and eye out for his column!
*Thanks to The Debris Field for the link.
4 comments:
I could summon some respect for the self-described debunker if, like UFO/paranormal aficionados, they exerted a little effort debunking their peers who tirelessly regurgitate irrational, theatrical talking points. That seems extremely rare. Is it even done? An awful lot of these debunker types seem like actors in a high school play.
Considering the relative scarcity of honest skepticism (as opposed to reflexive identity-buttressing demagoguery and ballyhooed gotcha! routinely passed off [typically, without even the slightest challenge] as "critical thought"), perhaps Mr. Priddy can forego the fish-in-a-barrel guffaws for something substantive, thoughtful and even-handed.
I won't be holding my hit... uh, I mean, my breath.
It's hard to say. I've found little info on him online to really gauge his approach.
Like the word 'skeptic,' 'debunker' has become a four letter word in the paranormal fields. But the core act of debunking doesn't bother me. Yes, there are a lot of self proclaimed debunkers out there who seem to only find glee in telling people they are wrong and ignoring considerations into other explanations. Just like there are doe-eyed believers who bite the hook of anyone fishing for a fan-base, there are debunkers who don't care so much about finding any real answers, but instead strive to defeat anything for the sake of the defeat alone.
There are similar arguments about skeptics - the whole "skeptics are the enemy" take. I don't think the act of being skeptical or debunking are negative in themselves, only some of those who wield such titles -- and it's usually those people that color the terms for others.
It's like the opinion of science to many paranormal enthusiasts. You'd think science was the epitome of evil to hear some speak, when often the real issue is not science, but the opinions and approach of people who hold the title of 'scientist.'
It's too early to say how Priddy will take on the paranormal. Ideally it will be with a skeptical open mind (which I believe is a much forgotten element of skepticism itself), and not just there to piss on parades just because.
It's easy to become jaded about those who carry such badges, but I think it makes more sense to review their work and reasoning before disregarding them.
I consider myself a skeptic, and because of such I have been accused of being a 'debunker-type,' when in fact, I actually think there is a real phenomenon behind some of this stuff, with yet unexplained circuitry lurking in the proverbial dark. It's just hard to make any kind of progress into what the phenomenon is and what it's actually doing, when the field of the paranormal is so cluttered with bullshit and the periodical reemergence of cases that have already been reasonably debunked.
I only hold my hits in for about 6-8 seconds.
Then I exhale.
Mmmmmmmm, hypoxxxia. As long as you stop short of cyanosis.
I'll cop to beating up on scientists and scientist wannabe's, but it's only because I have great appreciation for Science. Humans, not so much.
Reining in my cynicism is a challenge when I see half the 'best & brightest' are sick bastards happily owned and operated by 'defense' industry death mechants, and the other half making "medical breakthroughs" while I can't even afford a fucking hernia repair without erasing a pension and resigning myself to eating dandelions and catfood (generic!) for the duration of this incarnation.
This isn't, as many would scientists would assert, simply a political thing, but a sociopolitical thing. Scientists follow the money just like any run o'the mill fortune teller with the crudely fashioned sign on that ugly stretch of real estate out by the airport. Unlike the fortune teller, the scientist has considerably greater social advantage and uses his or her mighty brain to maintain that advantage.
It's a vicious dynamic, a downward spiral, and the results are all around us. Po' folk didn't make this contemporary culture. They/we are the commodity. I'm not poor yet, but my prospects are far from sunny.
Being a class warfare guerilla accounts for a lot of my misanthropic tenor. Plus, I get fussy when my urine tests clean, and it's probably potable by now... just in case I have to take a straight job anytime soon.
Oy. This is Friday, isn't it? I should try to save my bummer posts for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.
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