But I think this belief is rather suspicious. It would be a bit too convenient if it turned out correct. It would be a surprise if humans really were nearly all of what mattered, but no surprise at all if humans falsely believed we were nearly all of what mattered.
This is Proving Too Much. Pointing the same argument in a different direction:
You probably believe your beliefs are right. After all, they couldn’t otherwise be your beliefs. But who is telling you to believe these things? You are! Isn’t that suspiciously convenient? That you believe just the things that you tell yourself to believe? What about all the people who happen to believe different things? Well, of course they’re wrong, because you’re right, because you tell yourself so. Isn’t there something a little bit wrong here? Something that you will try not to see because it would totally destroy your whole worldview to admit it? List all your beliefs and you’re probably the only sentient being in all of creation that believes exactly those things, it only takes a few tens of bits to narrow down to just you. How likely is it that you, out of billions of people and trillions of sentient beings, are the only one who is right about everything? But that is what you are claiming with your beliefs. If you did not cling desperately onto the illusion of your rightness, you would have to admit that among all those trillions you are nothing, that you are only a jot of scum on the ocean of sentience.
What? It’s not suspicious that you believe what you believe. That’s an analytic truth. It would be suspicious if I was right about everything but I don’t think I am.
This is Proving Too Much. Pointing the same argument in a different direction:
You probably believe your beliefs are right. After all, they couldn’t otherwise be your beliefs. But who is telling you to believe these things? You are! Isn’t that suspiciously convenient? That you believe just the things that you tell yourself to believe? What about all the people who happen to believe different things? Well, of course they’re wrong, because you’re right, because you tell yourself so. Isn’t there something a little bit wrong here? Something that you will try not to see because it would totally destroy your whole worldview to admit it? List all your beliefs and you’re probably the only sentient being in all of creation that believes exactly those things, it only takes a few tens of bits to narrow down to just you. How likely is it that you, out of billions of people and trillions of sentient beings, are the only one who is right about everything? But that is what you are claiming with your beliefs. If you did not cling desperately onto the illusion of your rightness, you would have to admit that among all those trillions you are nothing, that you are only a jot of scum on the ocean of sentience.
What? It’s not suspicious that you believe what you believe. That’s an analytic truth. It would be suspicious if I was right about everything but I don’t think I am.
That is something we can agree on. :)