30 Phil, Chapter 18: In this new look at universals and the problem of universals, we use the traditional framing of realism, nominalism and Abelard’s middle ground of conceptualism. The role is science is used to update this exploration and introduce the idea that things like color don’t actually exist at all.
Wisdom Builder
Three Tidbit Stories
MODE:
TAKE CONTROL.
3 random tidbit stories in about 3 minutes.
Idea 1.
A TAKE CONTROL Story.
New Look
I wrote that TAKE CONTROL Story,
and posted it to TST 2 years ago.
Idea 2.
A TAKE CONTROL TST Term.
An Explorative Agnostic position on a speculative claim does not pretend certainty but is interested in active exploration.
Chapter 11 in 30 Philosophers clarifies the two types of agnostics:
Apathetic agnostics deem questions like the existence of ghosts irrelevant, while explorative agnostics remain curious.
In common use, agnosticism is sometimes treated as a worldview, and sometimes it is topic-specific. Some religious polemicists use “agnostic” as worldview slander, as if uncertainty itself were a failure of courage or faith. For others, agnosticism is simply a position on a topic: a refusal to pretend certainty where certainty has not been earned.
TST adopts the topic-specific meaning. In TST, agnosticism is not a worldview. It is a position a person takes toward a specific irrational topic. A person can be a believer, agnostic, or skeptic about the afterlife, astrology, ghosts, Valhalla, consciousness, God, gods, or the ultimate structure of reality. The worldview layer is handled elsewhere, through pragmatism. Agnosticism describes the topic position.
An explorative agnostic position is a curious one. It welcomes the mystery of the topic, perhaps even studies competing ideas, and asks what each framework might reveal about human meaning, fear, hope, identity, and reality. It is not passive uncertainty. It is disciplined curiosity.
With astrology, the Explorative Agnostic position may ask why people find it meaningful, how it functions socially, and why symbolic identity systems persist even when empirical claims fail. With Valhalla, they may explore Norse mythology, honor culture, death, courage, and the human need for an afterlife story. With String Theory, they may follow the math and scientific debate with real interest while still saying, “Not proven yet.”
I wrote that TAKE CONTROL TST Term,
and posted it to TST 5 months ago.
Idea 3.
A TAKE CONTROL FAQ.
First, this came about from the following Facebook comment:
“Agnosticism is a ludicrous… One can only lead their life as an atheist or a theist. …agnostics live their lives as atheists, and therefore…are…atheists.”
And now, the answer: Agnosticism is not ludicrous. In fact, it’s a core element of everyone’s worldview.
Agnosticism is not just about religion. It’s what happens every time you withhold commitment to something. Think about it. You have things you believe in and things you don’t. But, you also have the things in between. Those are your agnostic views. You may not have an opinion on Big Foot because the evidence is thin. You may not care about Dark Matter because even our smartest minds don’t know what it is yet. Or, you may dismiss astrology, not because it is disproven, but because you simply don’t want to devote your attention to it. In all these cases, agnosticism is not weakness. It is strength through restraint. It’s you saying, I have better things to do with my time.
In general, agnosticism splits into two forms: apathetic and explorative. An apathetic agnostic says, in effect, I do not see enough reason to care about this topic right now. An explorative agnostic says, I am interested, but I do not yet see enough evidence to commit either way. And here’s the deeper point: we are all agnostics. We have to be. No one has the time and energy to take a firm position on every claim. Some things we investigate. Some we set aside. That is how a sane mind manages attention, belief, and uncertainty.
The mistake is thinking every question demands an immediate identity-level answer. It does not. Sometimes wisdom means committing. Sometimes it means suspending judgment. Sometimes it means saying, I do not need to know right now. Agnosticism, properly understood, is not a ludicrous place to stand. It is a necessary part of life.
I wrote that TAKE CONTROL FAQ,
and posted it to TST 2 years ago.