• Chris Kavanagh wrote an extremely kind and reasonable comment in response to the Contra Kavanagh on Fideism post
• Alexander and Scott Aaronson provided partial arguments for the position mocked as “fideism”
• Three reflexive naive positions towards conspiracy theories: Idiocy, Intellect, and Infohazard
• Idiocy perspective makes conspiracy theories low status, but leaves people blindsided when they come across one
• Intellect perspective treats all theories the same, but may lead to people increasing their priors on conspiracy theories
• Infohazard perspective claims conspiracy theories are deadly traps, and should be treated with infohazard precautions
• Good conspiracy theories have convincing-sounding evidence in their favor, and may sound totally plausible to a smart person
• Everyone needs to be constantly vigilant of the possibility of conspiracy theories, and not be too sure they’re immune to propaganda
• The article discusses the importance of being aware of conspiracy theories and how to approach them.
• It suggests that people should trust experts and prestigious institutions, but also be aware of the potential for bias.
• It advises people to be aware of the Inside vs. Outside View when considering conspiracy theories.
• It suggests that people should look for the strongest evidence against the idea and consider the possibility that everyone who disagrees with the idea is not necessarily wrong.
• It also suggests that people should not feel the need to have an opinion on every conspiracy theory and that it is ok to have an awkward knot in their beliefs.
• Finally, it advises people to never suspend the first approximation of trusting experts and institutions.
Published February 15, 2023
Visit Astral Codex Ten to read Scott Alexander’s original post Trying Again On Fideism