My Doubts

Today I was reading in Little Green Footballs about the murder of Dr Tiller, an abortion doctor in the USA, and more specifically the response in blog comments from right-wing commenters. One struck me as particularly striking, "I haven’t the fainest doubt that he is,at this very moment,rotting in the very special place in hell that he so richly earned".

The part that made me notice this was that the poster claimed to have "not the fainest [sic] doubt" about something for which he can have no possible evidence. I realised then that a common theme through my philosophy, in science, in religion and in politics is doubt. I doubt that scientists who claim to say something definitive about a complex system like climate variation can justify their claims with the current evidence. I doubt that a disembodied force for which there is no evidence beyond the writings of superstitious, credulous people hundreds of years ago controls my life and the world. I doubt that simply borrowing money to spend on people deemed worthy by political elites, and giving central government more control will improve people's lives.

So I am scientifically curious although I believe the evidence where it is strong, I am an atheist although if someone gave me a reason to believe then I would have to reconsider and I am a fiscal, economic and social libertarian in my politics.

So I finally have a title for my blog. I hope someone will read it with the enthusiasm with which I read some of those on my blog roll. I hope that some who come will disagree with me, and post comments to that effect. That is a part of the doubt which I hope to spread to the world, because far more harm can be done by the man who has no doubts.