Perplexed comments on Positive Thinking - Less Wrong

20 Post author: Swimmer963 07 March 2011 01:03AM

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Comment author: CuSithBell 24 March 2011 08:44:16PM *  0 points [-]

The fact that they're better explained by other causes than the divine? The fact that people with similar experiences are objectively most likely to be factually incorrect in that specific domain? What good reason is there?

Edit: Consider all the people who have faith in some religion based on subjective personal conviction, and separate them into mutually exclusive groups. No one group is in the majority. Thus, your subjective personal conviction regarding religion is, best case scenario, more likely to be wrong than right.

Comment author: Swimmer963 24 March 2011 08:49:31PM 0 points [-]

I would say their criteria for a "better" explanation is different; they see an explanation as "better" if it implies the kind of world they want to live in. And of course that's irrational, but I doubt it feels irrational from the inside.

Comment author: CuSithBell 24 March 2011 09:04:05PM 1 point [-]

I agree. I guess I shouldn't squint so hard at the analogy! :)