Where is all this certainty coming from?

[unborn_chicken]

I started asking myself this after watching Leo's conspiracies video the other day.

I see it everyday.

Those who are against Trump (besides their reasons) seem to be a 100% percent sure of it.

Those who support him seem to be a 100% sure of it.

Those who suspect the world might be run by lizard people seem to be a 100% sure of it.

Those who think that's ridiculous, impossible, or just plain-stupid seem to be a 100% sure of it.

Those to believe cv19 is a hoax seem to be a 100% sure of it.

Those who think otherwise seem to be a 100% sure of it.

Those who think exploring conspiracies is just a distraction and a waste of time seem to be 100% sure of it.

Those who think it has importance and value seem to be 100% sure of it.

And I just want to ask the simple question:

Where is all this certainty coming from?

How are people (even some I respect and consider otherwise smart) so sure of themselves?

So nobody has doubts anymore?

Nobody considers that what they believe might be wrong anymore?

I mean, I myself lean towards the whole Qanon stuff (As misinterpreted as it has been. And I know I'm gonna get attacked for this lol ), but I would never claim to be 100% certain of it. I'm pretty well aware it could all be BS in the end, and I'm ok with that.

I'm just trying to ponder of how people seem to be so sure of themselves these days around these topics.

I mean how can we even pretend be certain about things like these?

What even IS certainty itself?

And why does nobody seem to care about it?

Thank you.

[PurpleTree]

Well i really don't know anything about QAnon etc.

but agree with you about certainty, to me it's not black or white

It's mostly grey, or a colourful spectrum

Most of the times i could make decent arguments for both sides

don't know why these people seem so certain

[BlackMaze]

Well you can't be certain and you shouldn't be. Everybody just take a position and makes it part of their identity and then they must defend themselves. 

[No Self]

It is more of a visceral reaction to evil than any intellectual certainty.

[ajai]

@unborn_chicken Ain't nobody trying to be certain of nothing.

23 minutes ago, unborn_chicken said:

What even IS certainty itself?

Now we are talkin.....??

 

Edited October 11, 2020 by ajai

[PurpleTree]

3 minutes ago, ajai said:

@unborn_chicken Ain't nobody is trying to be certain of nothing.

What do you mean by that?

 

So you're certain that nobody's certain?

Edited October 11, 2020 by PurpleTree

[unborn_chicken]

5 minutes ago, ajai said:

@unborn_chicken Ain't nobody trying to be certain of nothing.

Now we are talkin.....??

 

5 minutes ago, ajai said:

@unborn_chicken Ain't nobody is trying to be certain of nothing.

Now we are talkin.....??

Not in my experience, sadly. Not even around this community.

[ajai]

1 minute ago, PurpleTree said:

What do you mean by that?

NOBODY IS TRYING TO BE "CERTAIN" ABOUT ANYTHING

is it okay now?

[ajai]

1 minute ago, unborn_chicken said:

Not in my experience, sadly. Not even around this community.

Wait wait wait, let's not jump onto conclusions so faaast.....?

[PurpleTree]

6 minutes ago, ajai said:

NOBODY IS TRYING TO BE "CERTAIN" ABOUT ANYTHING

is it okay now?

Nope i still don't get what your statement really means.

So a lot of Trumpists and anti Trumpers, left and right, muslims and christians, vegans and meat eaters (or even carnivores) etc. "aren't trying to be certain or are certain in their ideologies?"

 

[Parththakkar12]

@unborn_chicken Well observed. People like to assume they're right when they're not really sure. The defensiveness is to protect themselves from gaslighting and getting swayed to the extremes, which backfires miserably.

[Carl-Richard]

You're confusing seriousness with certainty.

[unborn_chicken]

5 minutes ago, Carl-Richard said:

You're confusing seriousness with certainty.

Care to elaborate?

[Carl-Richard]

3 minutes ago, unborn_chicken said:

Care to elaborate?

Did the people you listed say explicitly "I'm 100% certain that this true!" or is that just a general wibe you're getting? How do you go about distinguishing that wibe from just being invested, involved, or simply taking it seriously? Does every action require 100% certainty?

[unborn_chicken]

23 minutes ago, Carl-Richard said:

Did the people you listed say explicitly "I'm 100% certain that this true!" or is that just a general wibe you're getting? How do you go about distinguishing that wibe from just being invested, involved, or simply taking it seriously? Does every action require 100% certainty?

Well, you see, it's all about the assumptions that people make and them taking a defensive position about things they cannot really verify.

Edited October 11, 2020 by unborn_chicken

[commie]

Yeah, the vegan vs. meat eater thing was hilarious.

12 minutes ago, unborn_chicken said:

taking a defensive position about things they cannot really verify.

So this isn't about certainty at all. There are things I'm certain about but I'm not defensive at all about them. Why would I be?

Defensiveness may arise purely from emotions or (super)ego but it often arises primarily due to lack of certainty.

Edited October 11, 2020 by commie

[Preety_India]

When they say what they say it doesn't mean it's out of 100% certainty. 

Not everything has to come from a place of certainty. People can make conjectures and have half baked opinions. 

These opinions can even change over time. It's a fluid state. 

It's called thinking. And thinking is never certain. 

 

[Carl-Richard]

2 hours ago, unborn_chicken said:

Well, you see, it's all about the assumptions that people make and them taking a defensive position about things they cannot really verify.

You got an example?

[Willie]

I’m certain I could be wrong on some things. I’ve seen it happen with my own eyes, it must be true!

[No Self]

The problem is in assuming that a New Ager who claims that unicorns are real and a scientist who claims the theory of evolution is real are equivalent. Even a toddler would be able to see the absurdity in this, though not an adult social media user, apparently.

Nazi Germany made the same mistake. Their claim of Aryan genetic superiority was 'pseudoscience' and based more on using psychological self-deception to blur the line between fantasy and reality. And no, it didn't end well. Except we are doing it in relation to even more serious issues, like climate change.

Calling upon arguments like ancient Greek Skepticism or other mental gymnastics is well and good. The bottom line is that we as a society will have to go through the natural consequences of our choices, just as we did in the 20th century.