Hurrah! Eliezer says that Bayesian reasoning bottoms out in Pan-Critical Rationalism.
re: “Why do you believe what you believe?”
I’ve always said that Epistemology isn’t “the Science of Knowledge” as it’s often called, instead it’s the answer to the problem of “How do you decide what to believe?” I think the emphasis on process is more useful than your phrasing’s focus on justification.
BTW, I don’t disagree with your stress on Bayesian reasoning as the process for figuring out what’s true in the world. But Bartley really did successfully provide the foundation for rational analysis. When you want to figure out how to think successfully, you should use all the tools at your disposal (pan-critical) because at that point, you shouldn’t be taking anything for granted.
@Wes: “This doctrine still leaves me wondering why this meta-level hermeneutic of suspicion should be exempt from its own rule.” It’s not exempt. Read “The Retreat to Commitment” by W. W. Bartley III. There’s a substantial section in which Bartley presents the best arguments he can find against Popper’s Epistemology (and WWB’s fix to it) and shows how the criticisms come up short. Considering your opponent’s best arguments is an important part of the process.
@Peter Turney: I like your description of “incremental doubt” because it illustrates how Bartley was saying that none of your beliefs has to be foundational. You should examine each of them in turn, but you have to find a different place to stand for each of those investigations.
Hurrah! Eliezer says that Bayesian reasoning bottoms out in Pan-Critical Rationalism.
re: “Why do you believe what you believe?”
I’ve always said that Epistemology isn’t “the Science of Knowledge” as it’s often called, instead it’s the answer to the problem of “How do you decide what to believe?” I think the emphasis on process is more useful than your phrasing’s focus on justification.
BTW, I don’t disagree with your stress on Bayesian reasoning as the process for figuring out what’s true in the world. But Bartley really did successfully provide the foundation for rational analysis. When you want to figure out how to think successfully, you should use all the tools at your disposal (pan-critical) because at that point, you shouldn’t be taking anything for granted.
@Wes: “This doctrine still leaves me wondering why this meta-level hermeneutic of suspicion should be exempt from its own rule.” It’s not exempt. Read “The Retreat to Commitment” by W. W. Bartley III. There’s a substantial section in which Bartley presents the best arguments he can find against Popper’s Epistemology (and WWB’s fix to it) and shows how the criticisms come up short. Considering your opponent’s best arguments is an important part of the process.
@Peter Turney: I like your description of “incremental doubt” because it illustrates how Bartley was saying that none of your beliefs has to be foundational. You should examine each of them in turn, but you have to find a different place to stand for each of those investigations.