The Curiously Pseudo-critical Mind

In a recent post on his blog, Michael Prescott (author of a number of suspense novels) gave name to a phenomenon that he refers to as the "Curiously Literal Mind" (or CLM). To me, the entire post seemed primarily an attempt to label and criticize people who don't buy into some of the same unscientific beliefs that Prescott holds. What struck me as truly curious, however, was the following comment:

Lest this sound unduly harsh, I should add that people whose right brain is overly dominant tend to be spacy, unreliable, credulous, indecisive, and emotionally unstable. The trick is finding balance between the two modes of thinking. I should also add that in my Ayn Rand days I was definitely in the left-brain camp myself.

It always amazes me that people can be critical thinkers in specific areas while still remaining completely uncritical in others. I am only vaguely familiar with Ayn Rand and the criticisms of Objectivism, but from what I understand, it completely disregards and denounces traditional philosophy, and is based on faulty and contradictory reasoning and logic.

Now, Prescott does not mention why he no longer follows the teachings of Ayn Rand, but I assume it is because he managed to break out of the faulty ways of thinking and see Objectivism critically for what it really was. I applaud him for taking this step in the direction of skepticism.

However, based on other posts to his blog, it is apparent that Prescott accepts a whole slew of other pseudoscientific ideas (such as ESP, acupuncture, and reincarnation), and seems to reject a reliance on science as good way to approach the world in general. (His reasoning for this, as it turns out, is essentially because science can create weapons, bad people do bad things in the name of science, and because science tells us that the universe is meaningless. All straw-men arguments that do not suggest alternatives to science or support their superiority to science anyway.)

Clearly, Prescott does have it within him to think critically--since he successfully escaped faulty beliefs in the teachings of Ayn Rand--he seems, however, unable or unwilling to apply this ability to other areas of his beliefs as well. It is strange to me that so many people are able to recognize faulty reasoning or logic in certain instances, while at the same time holding their own beliefs for almost the exact same faulty reasoning or logic.

Another example I have come across lately is Stand To Reason's Greg Koukl. I regularly listen to podcasts of the STR radio show. I find it curious how Koukl can defend his Christian beliefs against opposing religious beliefs by pointing out faulty reasoning and logical fallacies, without making the connection that his own religious beliefs stem from the exact same faulty reasoning and logical fallacies to begin with! It is interesting that people who seem so intelligent and logically-minded are unable to see their own fallacious thinking, when they can see it so clearly in others.

I think Michael Shermer put it best in his book Why People Believe Weird Things:

Smart people are very good at rationalizing things they came to believe for non-smart reasons.

I run into these "Curiously Pseudo-critical Minds" all the time. Someone who believes that aliens are visiting Earth based entirely on anecdotal accounts is not religious, even though the anecdotal "evidence" for religion is just as overwhelming as that for alien abductions (if not more so). Someone who believes in acupuncture does not believe in homeopathy, even though both are supported by almost identical fallacious reasons.

Is there hope for these CPMs? Perhaps. By identifying and rejecting fallacious reasoning in one area, hopefully they will be able to do the same in others over time. The appeal of believing in something that comforts you is a strong one, and it takes a lot of willpower to give up those beliefs in the face of reason and logic. Progression towards Prescott's "Curiously Literal Mind" is an important process that every kid begins when he realizes that Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy aren't real. For some, the progression to reality is slower than others, and may hit a few snags on the way. It's up to the rest of us to do our best to help them along.