pseudoskepticism

[Jonathan Lighter]

Not in OED but worthy of a passage in Wikipedia (s.v. "Scientific
Skepticism"):

"Richard Cameron Wilson, in an article in *New Statesman*, wrote that 'the
bogus sceptic is, in reality, a disguised dogmatist, made all the more
dangerous for his success in appropriating the mantle of the unbiased and
open-minded inquirer'.

"Some advocates of discredited intellectual positions such as AIDS denial
and Holocaust denial engage in pseudoskeptical behavior when they
characterize themselves as 'skeptics' despite cherry picking evidence that
conforms to a pre-existing belief. According to Wilson, who highlights the
phenomenon in his book *Don't Get Fooled Again (2008)*, the characteristic
feature of false skepticism is that it 'centres not on an impartial search
for the truth, but on the defence of a preconceived ideological position'."

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_skepticism#cite_note-Wilson_fooled-24>

JL
--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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