Guest Post from JDA.
I went to a gun show this past weekend. This was not my first gun show…not by a long shot…but I think perhaps it will be my last. Let me provide a bit of personal history to put this into perspective. For most of my adult life, I have been a gun-nut. I owned pistols and a variety of rifles that were all forms of “tactical” weapons, either semi-automatic weapons closely resembling military standard issue, or bolt-action rifles mimicking (closely or loosely) military sniper rifles. I hoarded ammunition. I kept survival gear always at the ready. I constantly imagined scenarios in which the use of these would be useful and/or necessary.Please don’t misunderstand me. I NEVER imagined any of the scenarios that have called this discussion to the national stage. Quite the opposite. I have lived my life trying to help others as much as I can. There is an author who categorized 2 types of people in regards to this; sheepdogs and wolves. I have tried my whole life to be a sheepdog. I have wanted to protect and save people my whole life, from my time in the Navy, to volunteering, to my current profession as a counselor. Many of the scenarios I envisioned in my head had at their core me protecting others…particularly loved ones…or even responding to something like the tragedies that we have recently witnessed to save people.
What is Hyperskepticism? It is something in my experience that is unique to the atheist, secular and skeptic communities. Fundamentally it is finding only peer reviewed scientific evidence sufficient – or some close proximity. Basically, the highest standard is required all the time. Or there might be some other standard, but it goes undefined and unstated; therefore, I assume the highest standard.
What is critical thinking? Critical thinking, in its broadest sense has been described as “purposeful reflective judgment concerning what to believe or what to do.” In my words, it considering information, data, etc and determining how useful and relevant it is to the topic, decision, etc at hand.
Just so you know, I HATE these messages . . . and now I have one! Rippere.com is only about my experience of the world. It is not related to any organization with which I am associated.
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