ID:36354
 
Keywords: life, politics, skeptical
This is probably not very common, but I frequently find myself worrying that I don't change my mind often enough. Refusal to change your opinion in the face of new facts is a pretty clear sign of a problem, since none of us are born with all the facts (and amazingly, don't even have all of them at the know-it-all age of twenty). Whenever you see someone who has made up their mind and refuses to even look at new facts, there's a good chance you are looking at someone who is wrong...if by chance not about that specific thing, then about an awful lot of other things.

All that said, I'm painfully aware that I am as capable as anyone of ignoring new facts. I like blogs and news sources that confirm my existing beliefs...any study that agrees with my current opinion is automatically correct, and any study that disagrees is probably methodologically flawed. My only real defense is that I think I have some ability, given time, to let facts bash me in the head enough to change my opinion.

But, well, let's put that to the test. If I'm telling the truth, then there must be things I've changed my mind about, right? What did I believe then and what do I believe now?

This is a quick summary of items. Originally I was going to explain each here, but that would make for an awfully mondo-sized post, so instead I'll follow up some of these with individual posts later. I may also add items if people are curious about additional subjects.

Subject Then Now
Gun control Fascism. No problem with handgun control.
Abortion Personal choice. Personal choice.
Unfair economic trades The government shouldn't allow people to impose unfair trades on others, such as price gouging, using low-paid foreign workers, lower pay for women, or usury. There is no such thing as an unfair economic trade.
Evolution Given genetics and random mutation, it follows that evolution occurs. Man I was a smart kid.
Paranormal Cool! Cool, but sadly non-existent.
People Everyone is the same and should be treated the same. Everyone is different but should be treated the same, except when they shouldn't.
Gay marriage People shouldn't get married. Any consenting adult should be able to marry any other consenting adult. Marriages should be less frequent and taken more seriously. Divorces should be less frequent and somewhat difficult.
Free speech Absolutist. Absolutist.
Free trade Absolutely necessary for a healthy economy. Same, only more so.
Death penalty Why pay for them for the rest of their lives? No problem with killing the guilty, but the death penalty always has and always will kill innocents as well, and that's not acceptable.
Government intervention The government is necessary for moral outcomes and to save people from bad decisions. If it's truly important to the country, the government has to do it. Government is inefficient and unnecessary for most moral outcomes, and people should be free to make bad decisions. If it's truly important to the country, the government almost certainly shouldn't be the one to do it.
Libertarian The one thing I'll never be. What I am. (More or less.)
Environmentalism Save the Earth! Leave the poor Earth alone. Most necessary improvements come naturally through economic progress, and most environmental initiatives are about feeling good, not doing good.
War Never solved anything. Except slavery, genocide, world domination.
God There is something out there. There is nothing out there.
Zeus Atheist. To paraphrase Richard Dawkins, "We're all atheists when it comes to Zeus. Some of us just take it one god further."


Let me know if you are interested in why I hold some particular belief or why I've changed my mind. I'll say up front that I welcome debate on any of these issues, but flames will be deleted.
I guess I know what you mean. I find the older I get the more I become "self aware."

You don't believe in ghosts/souls/the force? Nothing in other planes of existence effect our own? You don't believe in any sort of paranormal activity?
It's clear he doesn't believe in The Force, because The Force wills him not to believe in it.
I started to reply here, but that one seems worthy of a post, so thanks for the prompting!
What do you think about 'socialised' healthcare/education? Just curious - I can't see it in the table. I'm guessing 'no' from your stance on government intervention.

I would argue that government tends to be more efficient at dealing with things that require large capital outlay - say, the building of roads - because it's basically just a collective of the people. I'd put healthcare and education funding in that basket - charities, etc., already exist, and don't seem to be doing a great job of making access to decent healthcare and education universal.
Just before someone asks, you should probably put why you didn't include gay marriage or other related things on that list.

A lot of your "then" stuff is the same as me. I'm not going to regard your "now" list, because I'm seventeen and would only feel retarded listing my equivalent "then", ad that would be how I felt when I was a fourteen year old, and I must say, the person I was then is absolutely different from the person I am now. Here is where I disagree:

People -- There are some people that just need to be killed off. Racists, homophobes, Scientologists, extremists, etc.

Government intervention -- Almost always bad, and almost always has horrible, unintended consequences. If people don't fight for themselves, then people will end up being dependent on others forever.

God -- A pipe dream.

Abortion -- Not fond of it, but if it's going to happen, only one thing should die instead of both (I'm totally for it in certain cases, such as rape or the inevitable death of the mother).

Gun control -- >:|

Paranormal -- Comes up with amusing ghost stories.
I'm 100% for abortion. It lowers crime rates and saves tax payer money. Every woman should have a choice, not just the ones that were raped.
Abortion is not a nice procedure. Sometimes it is necessary, or at least preferable (and not just in cases of rape), so I'm definitely in favour of allowing it, provided that proper counselling is required first.

(Counselling by a religious organisation, or anyone else biased by their beliefs, doesn't count; it's harmful, not helpful.)

I also try to be open to new ideas (regarding them critically, of course), because I've seen the damage that can be done when people aren't. I don't agree with everything you said there, but I do think open-mindedness is the most important quality anyone can have, and that everything else follows from that.
Just before someone asks, you should probably put why you didn't include gay marriage or other related things on that list.

Good point. I added that one to the list.


People -- There are some people that just need to be killed off. Racists, homophobes, Scientologists, extremists, etc.

Who gets to decide who gets killed off? Historically, the person who gets to make that decision tends to make some pretty big errors.

To me these fall under "people should be allowed to make mistakes", including believing in things I disagree with. It only becomes an issue if they take an action that directly harms another person.

Deadron wrote:
It only becomes an issue if they take an action that directly harms another person.

That's namely what I'm referring to.
Racism is despicable, but being racist shouldn't be a crime. Thoughtcrime anyone?

The point at which it becomes a crime is the point at which somebody gets hurt, physically (e.g. bashing up black people) or mentally (e.g. spouting racist insults in public).

Depending on how far you take free speech, the latter may or may not be considered a crime. That's a whole 'nother debate.
Everyone is a little bit racist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9CSnlb-ymA =D
Yeah, but the blacks are more racist then I am. Bastards. <_<

EDIT: Ungh, there's some sort of web-filtering software installed on this computer that doesn't like your blog, Deadron. Apparently, your post on the paranormal is 'adult content', and your blog as a whole is 'violence'.

I really need to get my computer functioning again.
Yeah, well, there will be violence if the filter doesn't shut the *bleep* up!

=P

Stupid filters. So siteist.
your blog as a whole is 'violence'.

Bow down before the blog! The blog rules all!
War is peace
Freedom is slavery
Ignorance is strength
Blogging is violence
That population is already getting out of hand, abortion will defenetly help reduce that problem. Some girls, and especially the guys they had sex with just arent parental figures and cant handle children. Thus the child will only be brought into a poor life and likely be influenced by this and become poor himself. It is important to think about what life the child is comming into as well.