ShoePebbler01

Welcome to Gateway Beliefs everyone.

This is my first post and I’ll keep it brief.  If i correctly understand Peter Boghossian, Gateway Beliefs are benign and superstitious beliefs people use to make decisions which are not based on evidence.  Peter also suggests these inconsequential beliefs, for which one lacks sufficient evidence, may lay the foundation for one to cognitively habituate oneself to lending  ones belief to other things which one also thinks they have sufficient evidence to believe when no such evidence exists.  When I heard Peter say this, I had flashbacks to my childhood and my belief in both Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny.  Both of these were benign and superstitious beliefs I used to ascertain truth in my youth.  I’m far from my youth now and I’m trying very hard to believe as many true things and as few false things as possible in my life moving forward.

After hearing Peter’s >> talk <<, two very logical question came to my mind.

    1)  What processes am I using to determine my beliefs?

   2) Are my beliefs being made based upon insufficient evidence and past “Gateway Beliefs” which lead me away from reality?

Once again per Peter, “There are two commonalities among processes which take one away from reality”

   1)  They are processes which are not based on evidence.

   2) They are processes based upon what one thinks is evidence but is not

This site is my attempt to think deeply about “Gateway Beliefs” in general. I hope you find it useful.

My questions to  you after reading this post:

1) Do you have any “Gateway Beliefs” in your life?

2) How many of your beliefs are based on  “Faith” vs. Facts” 

3) Do you prefer to believe in things which are “True” or things which cause you the most “Comfort”?

Gateway = Any passage by or point at which a region (or belief) may be entered

Belief =  Confidence in the truth or existence of something not
immediately susceptible to rigorous proof

Gateway Belief = Benign and superstitious beliefs people use to make decisions which are not based on evidence

Superstition =  Any blindly accepted belief or notion.

Faith =  A belief without evidence.  An unreliable process which will rarely point one in the direction of truth

Reality = A real thing or fact.

Evidence That which tends to prove or disprove something: grounds for belief; proof

Fact = A truth known by actual experience or observation; something known to be true

Comfort = To soothe, console, or reassure; bring cheer to: