Real fear, incomplete data, and confirmation bias
- What are fallible humans supposed to do when complete, unbiased data is unavailable?
Ben distinguishes real fear from fear the facts don't warrant — his example is someone terrified a car will spin off a cul-de-sac into their house — and argues everyone grabs the data that affirms their narrative, so 'almost everybody who is not themselves assumes everybody else is a jerk.'
More on Fear
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What stops us from sharing the gospel
- Should church-service outreach and personal-life evangelism be treated differently?
- What are our biggest hangups in creating opportunities to talk about the gospel?
The hosts catalog the hangups that keep Christians from creating gospel opportunities at work and in clubs: fear of people's reactions, not knowing the right thing to say, worry…
From No. 456 · Just Do It
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Truth as healing ointment, not a shovel
- How do Christians balance telling the truth with being charitable?
A long host monologue: society's positions often come from fear of being on the wrong side rather than belief; schools' COVID measures go beyond science into fear.
From No. 424 · When Culture Lacks Objective Reality
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Dear LFTP: the family-baggage letter
- How do I handle my brother moving back to town with his criminal children and grandchildren?
The reader reads a second letter: the writer's widower brother, described as depressed and a terrible father, plans to move back to their hometown with his children and adult…
From No. 422 · Jesus, Technology and Persecution
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How much damage can misreading Revelation do?
- How much damage can a strong misinterpretation of the book of Revelation do?
A host poses the episode's hard question: how much damage a strong misinterpretation of Revelation can do.
From No. 409 · Super Sign of the End Times