In this episode, I speak with Anthony Magnabosco a founder and the current Executive Director of the nonprofit Street Epistemology International, an educational organization that is committed to addressing dysfunction in public and private discourse by encouraging rationality through civil conversation. Anthony has been involved with Street Epistemology since 2013, and has given dozens of talks and workshops at conferences and events domestically and internationally. Many of his conversations have been uploaded to YouTube and demonstrate how Street Epistemology can be applied to a variety of claims including ones that are spiritual, political, or societal.
The point is open discussions on a topic that too many people view as untouchable, unassailable, unquestionable.
When I was raised religious, hearing the slightest critique of my religion filled me with irrational frustration, I was utterly unable to have those conversations with anyone, in part because to have doubts felt like some kind of sin.
But hearing others have those conversations helped me realize that some of my doubts were shared and that I wasn’t alone. Hearing others have those conversations honestly, and with empathy and intelligence made me realize my own fears were a kind of cognitive dissonance that prevented me from actually forming my own opinions instead of parroting the opinions I was raised with; and for those conversations I am eternally grateful.
It’s not always about the conversation between two people; it’s also about the audience who listens to both sides to form their own opinions.