TST Trainer
WWB Story Mode
MODE:
~
8 minute
audio walk.
OVM:
Open Viewpoint Method (OVM).
Story mode.
Eight key ideas and takeaways.
1. Our first story.
From History: 3 Types: Empirical, Rational, & Irrational.
Subject: Worldviews.
New Look
Avoid irrational pragmatists; they dismiss good evidence when it gets in the way.
Looked at differently.
Pragmatism can be wise when it works within common knowledge, evidence, and disciplined reason. But do not let your habits or preferences turn “what works” into an excuse to ignore reality, protect dogma, or dismiss good evidence. What is useful matters, but usefulness alone is not enough.
That OVM Story,
was first published on TST 2 years ago.
2. Now for our second story.
From History: Spirituality is exploration..
Subject: 2 Layers & Metaphysics.
New Look
When publicly discussing spirituality, distinguish thought of the material world, what we directly experience, from the spiritual interpretations beyond it. Organize each spiritual idea into agnostic, nontheistic, and theistic.
Simply put.
The Material-Spiritual Framework begins with common footing. Our firsthand knowledge of the material world. From solid footing, you can map how people extend meaning beyond it. Do not force belief or disbelief on someone else, that’s dominiation, not tolerance. Instead, strive to clarify categories and understand with respect what others believe. It is never a debate.
That OVM Story,
was first published on TST 2 years ago.
Finally, 4 frequently asked “questions.”
3. Tidbit number three, a quote.
Subject: Belief.
A spiritual experience may shape a life, but private experience alone does not establish an empirical or rational claim about reality.
That takeaway is this.
Personal spiritual experiences can be powerful, sincere, and life-changing. Do not sneer at them. Simply keep categories clear: private experiences may justify personal belief, but they do not, by themselves, establish public truth. Honoring belief and requiring evidence are not enemies. They are different disciplines.
That OVM FAQ,
was first published on TST 2 years ago.
4. Tidbit number four, another quote.
Subject: Open Viewpoint Method.
- Dogma, Data, Doubt..
The empiricist stands between dogma and paralysis—open to revision, grounded in evidence.
That takeaway is this.
A true believer clings. A true skeptic withholds. The empiricist navigates between them—accepting what is reasonable, revising when necessary, and resisting both blind certainty and endless doubt. Wisdom is not found at the extremes, but in disciplined calibration between confidence and humility.
That OVM FAQ,
was first published on TST 2 years ago.
5. Now it is time a question.
Subject: Worldviews.
Your people and culture give you a big leg up, a great starting place, but it is not a final place to stand still.
From another angle.
Your people and culture shape how you see the world before you ever begin to examine it. That inheritance can include wisdom, but also bias, fear, fashion, and tribal loyalty. Critical thinking begins when you stop treating the familiar as automatically true and start sorting what aligns with reality.
That OVM FAQ,
was first published on TST 3 weeks ago.
6. Tidbit FAQ number six.
Subject: Open Viewpoint Method.
Most convictions feel universal because they are familiar. Worldview humility begins when we recognize the role of time, place, and culture in shaping what feels obvious.
Now, to be clear.
Humility is not weakness; it is cognitive strength. The ability to examine the origin of your own convictions is a Socratic discipline. The understand that you live during a particular time, at a particular location, and within specific worldviews.
That OVM FAQ,
was first published on TST 2 months ago.
“Done.”
Tidbits are written to stand alone, but they are also designed to interlock—forming a research layer that supports deeper synthesis.
Claims are grounded at the smallest level possible, allowing evidence to be updated once and reflected everywhere it is used.
Refresh for another set.
TST Trainer
(c) 2025-2026 TouchstoneTruth.
Writing and coding by Michael Alan Prestwood.
(c) 2025-2026 TouchstoneTruth.
Writing and coding by Michael Alan Prestwood.
