HEALTHY SKEPTICISM

A healthy dose of skepticism is quite healthy.

Me? I’m healthily skeptical to the point of not believing anything I see, read, or hear. Or say.

Which makes processing current events pretty simple.

And I’m doubtful, even when thinking to myself…

Unfortunately, today it seems people lack skepticism – which is why scams are so prevalent.

What? You need my credit card # so you can verify my credit card number?

And you only need the first 9 of my social?

My bad – I’ve never missed jury duty before! And my warranty has expired?

Why clickbait is so frequently clicked:

Who doesn’t want to burn stomach fat?

Isn’t curious about Gwyneth Paltrow’s 20 most favorite olive dips?

Though I have to admit, I really didn’t want to eat again after reading those 19 shocking food facts!

Why we believe what we read on the internet – we’re on sites which agree with what we already think – the most popular: www.weagreewithwhatyoualreadythink.com.

And if Al Gore approves it for the internet, it must be true!  

We skeptics know when the government tries to control ‘misinformation’, it’s to substitute their own ‘misinformation’.

We skeptics also know that ‘experts’ aren’t really expert, they’ve just been designated so.

If the Wizard of Oz was remade today, Oz would make the scarecrow an ‘expert’.

Expert or not, experts abound.

We listen for expert opinions on sports – their primary qualification having been fired for prior poor job performance.

We listen for expert financial advice – if only we knew which half of the time they’d be right.

And Old Man Rant #27: That ‘expert’ told us masks don’t work! (Shakes fist quietly and quickly, My Captor tired of hearing about it).

But we skeptics are persuadable – I changed my mind on something as recently as 2018 – unlike cynics who nearly destroyed progress with their close-mindedness: The wheel will never roll, fire will only lead to insurance claims, chocolate doesn’t go with peanut butter!  

True skepticism dating to WW2, when the world realized Hitler couldn’t be trusted: The ‘Trojan Volkswagen’ distracting with its affordability, as he invaded Poland.   

Clickbait invented by Reader’s Digest, subscribers intrigued by:

Cigarettes great for digestion, and 18 other health benefits!

Bess Truman’s 20 most favorite meat loaf recipes.

And my parent’s favorite – 23 signs your neighbor is a Communist Spy!

Joseph McCarthy originating ‘misinformation’ with his Red Scare investigation – – even then, it was your voice they wanted! There’s a Red under your bed!

But were they skeptical enough?

Did we really like Ike?

They listened to Edgar Bergen – a radio ventriloquist!

They repeatedly fell for the “Argentinian Nazi Prince” scam.

And it was common for the hidden ball trick to work multiple times during a baseball game.

Succeeding decades are packed with events that ‘didn’t really happen’:

Jerry Garcia faking his own death. Would that it were true.

The 1971 World Series.

The whole Cold War thing – did we really need to hide under our desks during A bomb drills?

My counsel: Living skeptically can be fun: Demand to see the evidence!

In background, My Captor shakes fist wearily, just wanting to get through the news in peace.

My other counsel: Skepticism really needs to come for politics – we skeptics already aware they ALL suck, neither party “here to help”.

Then maybe partisanship would become mutual resignation.

But painfully aware – and a bit depressed – that the campaigns over the next 14 months will be “Your guy sucks worse than our guy!”

My final counsel: If you didn’t believe a word of this post, perhaps you’re properly skeptical…

For 187 more posts like this –each with a link to the data – go to beersatthenifty.com. Your phone will display every post, and you can waste an hour or two.

Or send me an email to the site, and I’ll add you to my Sunday distribution.

TO ENHANCE YOUR ENJOYMENT OF THIS POST, PAIR IT WITH THE FOLLOWING SONGS (FIND YOUR OWN DAMN LYRICS!):

XTC was a great ‘80s band, some of us believing they were the best ‘80s band. And while I’ve used them before, there aren’t any worthy songs about skepticism, so this will have to do.

Check out Oranges and Lemons, and English Settlement – the latter one of my ‘deserted island CDs’.

Cynical Days  XTC

Another year’s gone by,
The world’s grown older,
Sometimes I heave a sigh,
People grow colder.

Every day I do my best to show,
I can make it in this world I know,
But all the bad thoughts that people bring,
My faith in human nature’s
Getting pretty thin.

Another see through scheme,
People are shallow.
The dark night’s closing in,
My dark thoughts follow.

I try and make my world a better place,
(My efforts seem in vain),
But I’m competing in a human race,
(Falling deeper down the drain),
That value things that just don’t count,
Makes me wonder what it’s all about.

Help me get through these cynical days.
Help me get through my cynical ways.
You say it’s just a passing phase,
You’ve got to help me get through these cynical days.