Unsubstantiated Assumptions Quotes

We may define "faith" as a firm belief in something for which there is no evidence. Where there is evidence, no one speaks of "faith". We do not speak of faith that two and two are four or that the earth is round. We only speak of faith when we wish to substitute emotion for evidence. The substitution of emotion for evidence is apt to lead to strife, since different groups substitute different emotions.

The hunger for facile wisdom is the root of all false philosophy.

… people reject the validity of a scientific source because its conclusion contradicted their deeply held views.

Science is the father of knowledge, but opinion breeds ignorance.

It is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatsoever for supposing it is true.

Ignorance is the mother of suspicion.

To assume that someone's views are invariably influenced or shaped by his or her partner is lazy. It is an intellectual crutch we grope for when we do not have an effective counter to someone's argument.

In the absence of hard intelligence, covert action is a fool’s game.

At the core of all well-founded belief, lies belief that is unfounded

Religious people know deep down that that is the most vulnerable area of their lives, and when others question it, they are liable to hit out and feel insulted. You know it is absolutely without proof, yet people still commit themselves totally to this belief. They cannot refute it because it is so central to their lives.

To rewrite history on the bases of hypotheses which have not materialized is not only a fruitless task, but, in my eyes, meaningless.

In like manner, if I let myself believe anything on insufficient evidence, there may be no great harm done by the mere belief; it may be true after all, or I may never have occasion to exhibit it in outward acts.

A great many people mistake opinions for thought.

He'd believe anything provided it's not in Holy Scripture.

A lot of improvisers mistakenly assume stand-up is awful, because there are a lot of stand-ups in the world that did not appeal to me. It was so easy to make a blanket statement when I was improvising only: 'Stand-up's terrible.' It's so ignorant and stupid to do that. But it's easy to do that. So that's where I came from.

Serbia is blamed in advance for everything.

If you think something's stupid, it probably is.