Sunday 9 January 2011

Morning Scepticism: Witnessing

One persistent apologetic is the rhetorical question of "where you there?" For almost everything, we answer no. We weren't there when our parents conceived (at least not to be able to witness it), so how can we know that we were conceived? Can you say you weren't delivered by a stork?

Perhaps a simple thought experiment should illustrate the absurdity of the question. Imagine coming home and finding the door broken and open. Upon going inside, you see a mess. Drawers are sticking out and items are everywhere. Furthermore, many valuable items have gone missing. Since there were no eyewitnesses, are you saying that you're at a complete loss as to how to explain what you see?

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