Mike's Skepticism

Last updated 03/18/07.

In fall 1997, I was persuaded by the late Steve Kangas to write a column for Suite101, an internet startup running blog-like user communities. Steve suggested that I write against libertarianism, but I decided instead to aim for a more general audience in skepticism. You can read the original articles at Suite101 with discussions here.

I ran this proto-blog with intermittent articles for a little over two years. I found them very useful for marshalling my thoughts on a wide variety of subjects. Some are run-of-the-mill skeptical fare, but the ones I'm proudest of wander outside of the usual categories. I'm putting a * in front of those.

Warm up your bullshit detectors!: 1 December 1997. My introductory message, describing my aims.
The meaning of Skepticism: 1 January 1998. An overview of skeptical fundamentals.
Skepticism of Suite 101: 28 January 1998. Detection of gross bias by another author at Suite101.
* Nonsense On Stilts: 10 March 1998. The nature and origin of rights.
Easter? Bah, Humbug!: 3 April 1998. A skeptics view of Easter.
* Distrust in logic.: 5 May 1998. The illogical use of logic to bludgeon people with arguments.
Organic, Schmorganic, Healthy, Schmealthy....: 1 June 1998. The range of absurd dietary beliefs is truly mind boggling. Organic foods for example.
* Skepticism Of Popular Economics Arguments: 16 July 1998. Detecting falsehood in popular economics arguments.
The Skeptic's Dictionary: 2 September 1998. Robert T. Carroll's excellent skeptical web sites are reviewed.
* Price and Moral Relativism: 6 October 1998. Moral relativism is explained by analogy to price.
* Skepticism of Philosophical Thought: 16 December 1998. An intro to David Stove's concerns about philosophical thought.
Eulogy for Steve Kangas: 24 February 1999 Remembering Steve Kangas.
Globalism, Neoliberalism, and Corporatism: 26 May 1999. Literature critical of laissez-faire fundamentalism.
Skepticism of Psychology: 21 July 1999. While there is real scientific psychology, most of what is popularly known and practiced as psychology is fraudulent.
Heinlein's Libertarianism: 30 September 1999. Heinlein's libertarian fairytales well deserve a little criticism.
Skeptical Film: 4 October 1999. A few films present skeptical messages which stay with you.
* Skepticism of Rationality: 17 February 2000. "Rationality" is more pejorative than analytic.
Links To Skeptical Resources