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In this post, we will look how concepts are actually lenses, and how this helps us better understand morality.  Part of the case will include how concepts are specific sets of criteria that narrow options down, and make it possible for us to observe, understand, and act with better precision. We will also cover what the largely unrecognized function of using lenses for decision-making is about, and why morality is justified on a basis that draws from concepts being lenses. In addition, justification for Sam Harris’* Moral Landscape position about thriving being morally good will be presented, along with lens-based insight on how thriving helpsRead More →

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In the previous post(1), I shared four steps based on REBT(2), to quickly help lower your distress or frustration about something. Here is a slightly improved version of the steps: Why replace the absolutes and add potentials(3) through adding “if”? We do it because we get rid of too many potentials if we aren’t careful. This happens because we think by narrowing down potentials. Look at how we do it with stuff, (in this case, a small spoon):Read More →

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There Are a Lot of Different Situations Where We Feel We Just Can’t Handle It There are times when something’s really difficult, or when we see a belief that seems so wrong, or when someone does something so bad that we could lose our patience. Receptive skeptics may feel like they can’t help but scorn things that look too terrible and harmful to not. There are also times when your thoughts about yourself leave you feeling you just can’t handle it. You may scorn yourself, diminish your value, or sell your abilities short. In this post, I’m going to lay out four steps you canRead More →

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It is one thing to be a rational thinker when it comes to science.  But rational thinkers should also not be experiencing unnecessary interpersonal conflict, being too hard on themselves, feeling a situation is worse than it is, or being too hard on others.  They should be managing their emotions to better build resistance against faulty beliefs.  But without understanding how to do that, (especially when Receptive Skepticism comes out against scorning), managing emotions wouldn’t make much sense.​ Emotion Management Is Something for Doing on Your Own with No OversightReceptive Skepticism kind of takes cognitive restructuring for granted, but I have been shocked to haveRead More →

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A while back, I had a conversation with some online friends about science communication.  And in that conversation, a friend brought up a problem there was with using “science communicator” as a broad term, as so many were doing.  I was pretty swayed by the conversation, and started promoting the term Science Advocate among friends as an alternative for most people. But I have also seen how there has been a struggle to fit everything under that niche, and how there was a lot of confusion in the process because of that.  I think that we need to get something like this breakdown as aRead More →

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Not Just Any Emotion: Shame in Behavioral Science CrosshairsPsychologist Karen Horney viewed it with the intensity needed to call it a Tyranny.  The father of therapy through teaching rational thinking, Albert Ellis, zeroed in on shame as the source of a large amount of distress and mental health problems, denouncing the shame and even called it  “Musterbation”.  And it continues to be seen as problematic to this day, being described as the root behind most psychological problems, and perpetuating the problem it is trying to solve. I am keeping the links simple for easy reading, but even this opposing case notes that there is a reallyRead More →

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Key components of Receptive Skepticism come from systems theory.  Practitioners of skeptical inquiry must know systems theory, so they don’t neglect scientific evidence on how to interact with our society.   And they can not justifiably evaluate the actions of others, while neglecting systems theory. When Receptive Skepticism promotes using systems theory, it is promoting: [1]. “the foundation of couple and family psychology research and practice. Systems theory provides a set of principles and concepts that inform our understanding of human behavior…” The above link is a resource to help both demonstrate the centrality of systems theory in the behavioral sciences, and to demonstrate that any social system isRead More →

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We find out what scorn is through systems theory.  Systems respond to changes, using feedback loops.   First, toss out the everyday meaning of feedback, this is a very different scientific term, so use the scientific definition to work through this.  They get a system stable/to equilibrium: Negative feedback loop, corrects a change Positive feedback loop adapts the system with a change. Since social systems operate just like other systems in systems theory, then we just ask what are the feedback loops in our social system?  What corrects change?  Now we have found scorn, and now, we identify it right, as mechanism with a purpose in whichRead More →

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After a terrifying and traumatic incident, Penny Lane Handley, was submitted to a heavy level of false accusations regarding the post that have now been laid to rest: -One false accusation was that Penny was not a victim of a fire.  -Another false accusation was that Penny had shoes, claiming they were provided before the incident in question.  This claim was heavily insisted upon and leveled in multiple related threads. We now can clearly identify these accusations as false, due to both the video interview, and from the information inside of the two posts written by both the main individual from the hotel, and theRead More →

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It is ultimately, because it is ineffective for advancing reason and science to be one.  False balance is something that happens in places with bad methodology.  Receptive Skepticism is an open-mindedness movement, with good methodology, focused on evaluating ideas, while maintaining positive relationships with society, and positive relationships with opponents.  But open-mindedness calls for picking sides too, because we have to be open to where the evidence is strongest, and weakest.  At a certain point, not acknowledging that a side has much better support and higher probability, is a closed-minded act of denial.  Even staying neutral then, can be closed-minded. So we take stances onRead More →