Rationalist Agnosticism

There are a lot of worldviews out there that I respect, as internally consistent worldviews, if not as actual truth.

However, there is one ideology that is steeped in simple bullshit.

Rationalist Agnosticism, is a muddled tangle of hoity-toity ideas rolled together by a conglomerate of rebellious college students, seeking to demonstrate their independence from the ideologies of their upbringing, and limp-wristed, octogenarian book-philosophers, who are more interested in promoting tolerance of beliefs than actually expanding human understanding. Occasional interesting exceptions crop up, but for the most part they are the dumping grounds for all the most obnoxiously boring philosophers in the world.

What really annoys me is that Rationalist Agnosticism claims to do the impossible; it claims to construct a worldview free from the confines of belief. Belief is the foundation of the understanding from which we contextualize our experiences of the world. Belief is not a cage for our minds, but the skeleton that gives them shape.

In reality, the rationalist agnostic accepts so little as self-evident, that he is able to fool himself into believing he has accepted nothing. Nevertheless, the ideas of the vanilla bland adherent take on a fairly consistent shape, that quickly reveals the underlying structure.

Rationalism, is founded in a number core assumptions that I consider to be perfectly valid. (The things I see with my eyes, with rare exception, do exist. etc. Other people actually exist, and their observations can be combined with yours to form a more complete mental model of the world as it is. etc.) These core assumptions of rationalism remain steadfastly rooted in the cannon of a force that purports to assume nothing.

It is this hypocrisy that so makes my blood boil. An ideology that denies all belief, except for those it explicitly endorses, isn't tolerant simply because it poo-poos at all outside ideas equally. It is arrogant, intolerant and foolish to assume your set of starting assumptions is inherently superior, without allowing for the consideration of other options.

Where is the humility and courage to discard the existing model, that once gave rationalism the power to terrify the halls of power? Where is the passion that drove Galileo to step away from the herd, stop milling about the approved manuscripts of academia, and look to the stars? This watered down, cowardly elitism, that refuses to acknowledge the possibility of anything relevant existing beyond the scope of ones own field, is a grave disservice to all the great rational minds who have gone before.

The universe is still vast, mysterious and dangerous. Has mankind simply lost the courage to peek out from the warm blanket of his assumption and the the terrible truths lurking at it's heart?