Questions

“The simplest explanation is the one we should favor, until it is proven to be inadequate.” To these we can add Hitchens’ razor, named after Christopher Hitchens, the late literary critic, journalist, contrarian, and staunch atheist: “What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence.” Together, these three tools can prevent us from falling into a spiral of misbelief. They invite us to ask questions such as: Is it reasonable to assume malicious intent over stupidity, human fallibility, or chance? Is it sensible to propose a complex web of ill intention?