If the respectable academic consensus in some field is remote from reality, the prominent authors in it will normally still be strongly selected for intelligence and skills in writing and arguing. As prominent academic authors, they will also be very high-status individuals. It follows that by studying some such field, you are exposing yourself to well-written and masterfully crafted arguments for delusional views espoused by intelligent high-status people. Unless you approach the subject with a hostile stance, it can be very hard to avoid falling for them.
This is especially problematic in fields whose subject matter is ideologically charged. Studying those often means submitting oneself to highly effective ideological propaganda, which can be very hard to resist.
That you carefully avoid naming names is itself a symptom of the problem, as well as contributing to it (I’m not in any way blaming you—you have to protect yourself). You self-censor, along with a lot of other sensible and reasonable people, with the result that the propaganda goes unanswered. Of course a lot of people are not shy about attacking the propaganda, but they either already were or else become low-status, which has the perverse effect of strengthening the propaganda.
It’s really very inconvenient for me that you never name names, which leaves the discussion at an abstract and therefore not entirely useful level. Additionally it’s not very convincing, because you don’t give the material, specific evidence that your claims are true (again, entirely understandable and blameless). It’s a bit like discussing the conflict between the creationists and the Darwinists without ever saying that that’s what you’re talking about, let alone saying which side is right and why. (It is safe to mention the Darwinists versus the creationists, because the right side, the Darwinists, are high status.)
If the respectable academic consensus in some field is remote from reality, the prominent authors in it will normally still be strongly selected for intelligence and skills in writing and arguing. As prominent academic authors, they will also be very high-status individuals. It follows that by studying some such field, you are exposing yourself to well-written and masterfully crafted arguments for delusional views espoused by intelligent high-status people. Unless you approach the subject with a hostile stance, it can be very hard to avoid falling for them.
This is especially problematic in fields whose subject matter is ideologically charged. Studying those often means submitting oneself to highly effective ideological propaganda, which can be very hard to resist.
That you carefully avoid naming names is itself a symptom of the problem, as well as contributing to it (I’m not in any way blaming you—you have to protect yourself). You self-censor, along with a lot of other sensible and reasonable people, with the result that the propaganda goes unanswered. Of course a lot of people are not shy about attacking the propaganda, but they either already were or else become low-status, which has the perverse effect of strengthening the propaganda.
It’s really very inconvenient for me that you never name names, which leaves the discussion at an abstract and therefore not entirely useful level. Additionally it’s not very convincing, because you don’t give the material, specific evidence that your claims are true (again, entirely understandable and blameless). It’s a bit like discussing the conflict between the creationists and the Darwinists without ever saying that that’s what you’re talking about, let alone saying which side is right and why. (It is safe to mention the Darwinists versus the creationists, because the right side, the Darwinists, are high status.)