Dec. 16, 2015 - Rubin Report - Dave Rubin
03:35
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| Speaker | Time | Text |
|---|---|---|
| I'd like to believe that critical thinking is woven into pretty much everything we do here on The Rubin Report, but today's show is going to have an even keener focus on this all-encompassing topic. | ||
| At the end of the day, whether we're talking about politics, religion, or current events, it all boils down to critical thinking, the definition of which is, quote, the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment, end quote. | ||
| Can we really look at the world the way it truly is, not the way we want it to be? | ||
| Can we set aside our faith-based hopes to analyze real-world problems? | ||
| Or is faith actually a part of the problem as opposed to being the solution? | ||
| Each week I try to have conversations that exist in this space without resorting to ad hominem attacks and strawman arguments. | ||
| That guiding principle is fully based in critical thinking and moral reasoning. | ||
| Joining me this week is Peter Boghossian, philosophy instructor, critical thinker, and author of a manual for creating atheists. | ||
| Peter's book is a really incisive, clear take on why critical thinking is important, how faith-based thinking can be dangerous, and also relates what you can do to spread ideas based on fact and reason Yes, I did say help there. | ||
| Help is exactly what I believe is needed in this situation. | ||
| and relatable style on topics that many are afraid to touch on, even with the people closest | ||
| to them. | ||
| He gives the reader the very tools to help people trapped by faith-based thinking. | ||
| Yes, I did say help there. | ||
| Help is exactly what I believe is needed in this situation. | ||
| When your beliefs aren't based in reason and critical thinking, it creates a space | ||
| where extremism can creep in. | ||
| This of course isn't beholden to one religion or ideology. | ||
| Anytime you throw reason and fact out the window to trade it with ideas that aren't provable, you create the very breeding ground that extremism needs to spread. | ||
| It's not a coincidence that in places where gays, women, and minorities are treated poorly are also the places where religion has often been a substitute for clear moral thinking. | ||
| By the way, we here in the West could do a much better job of this ourselves. | ||
| I know we're more focused on Islamic extremism on this show, but there are all kinds of extremism in the world. | ||
| You can't deal with any of these ideologies with half-truths and by shooting the messengers. | ||
| You must deal with them by looking at them head-on and tackling the ideologies with better ideas and moral clarity. | ||
| We live in a time when religious extremism is on the rise. | ||
| I'm going to guess that we probably don't have many religious extremists watching this show, so I don't know how much of an effect I can have on those people. | ||
| The people that I can have an effect on, however, is you guys. | ||
| People out there from every walk of life, from all over the globe, who want to do the work of finding out what brings us together, not what tears us apart. | ||
| I firmly believe that critical thinking is the solution. | ||
| Critical thinking doesn't care about your race, your sexuality, or your nationality. | ||
| It is a roadmap to solving serious issues and combating superstitious thinking that has led to many real-world problems. | ||
| Much of the right in America is led by Christian religious ideology. | ||
| Much of the left, while not guided by religion, has become as dogmatic in its beliefs. | ||
| Between the two is where most clear-minded, free-thinking people live. | ||
| It's what my guest on next week's show, Ali Rizvi, refers to as the New Center. | ||
| I think by letting go of our superstitions and focusing on real solutions, we can change the world for the better. | ||
| Either that, or we can leave it up to the zealots. |
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