Recently, I noticed this strange question above in an Aeon-Psyche article: Do we have good reasons to believe in beliefs? A radical philosophy of mind says no. Last Saturday, a new friend said the following: "Believing is in the nature of mankind; it's a clear feeling. You're almost born with it." I couldn't agree more with what he said. It was in a slightly...
Belief systems
Washington isn’t listening to business on China any more (FT)
17 May, 2023
INTRODUCTION LO: The FT opinion below is an interesting, valid analysis that is worth reading. Until 2020, I would - probably - have agreed with the conclusions below. In my 2019 update of the 7 Belief systems (eg, 2015 original), I had even removed Politics from its Power domain. The subsequent Chinese political crackdown on various business sectors made me...
Having beliefs is the ultimate cause of anxiety
12 May, 2023
My blog title is borrowed from a 2023 Aeon essay on Known unknowables. Known unknowns is another term for human beliefs and our related 7 Belief systems (ie, 2015 original, 2019 update, 2023 update). Beliefs are the "things" we know that we do not know but still believe. "They thought of their scepticism as a way of life – as a way of reaching ataraxia or...
Bisexuality and trust
10 May, 2023
Our belief systems are governed by three domains: Love, Knowledge & Power. All three domains have trust issues, like fake news (Knowledge) and lying politicians (Power). The domain that (probably) has most trust issues is Love. How can bisexual people even trust each other?? A 2019 Pew Research Center report appears to confirm those trust issues: Bisexual adults...
Confusion: reality vs beliefs
2 May, 2023
When reality is different from our assumptions, beliefs, or expectations then we will get confused. A recent and excellent Aeon-Psyche article argues that Confusion is a symptom of learning. In my view, our confusion will either result in (internal) curiosity, a prerequisite for learning, or be ignored. In "2003, the psychologists Paul Rozin and Adam Cohen asked...
Knowingness, a sibling of Know-it-All
25 Apr, 2023
Recently, I learned a new word: knowingness. It featured in a 2023 article in Aeon-Psyche magazine: Our big problem is not misinformation; it’s knowingness. In my view, knowingness is similar to the proverbial phrase: Mr./Mrs. Know-it-All. Also see this 20th century quote: "The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure...
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