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Skepticism is not just a philosophical position, discussed only in university classrooms or in books, but is instead a tool used by most people on a daily — if selective — basis. Skepticism, for example, lies at the heart of the simple aphorism “you get what you pay for,” in that a person concerned with purchasing only high-quality products should be wary of those which appear to be underpriced.
And with that in mind, it becomes obvious that a not-insignificant portion of the practice of skepticism in today’s world is directed towards helping people keep their hard-earned dollars in their own wallets. Aside from magazines like Consumer Reports, which try to ensure that products live up to their advertising claims, there are also advocates challenging the assertions of alternative medicine, faith healing, stereo components, automotive products, etc.
Here on the Skeptic Friends Network, we have David Glück (aka Kil and “the Evil Skeptic”) as our own consumer skeptic. With a wide range of interests and experience, David sets out the facts for alt-med, bookstores, Steve Garvey and, most-popularly, the Miracle Thaw, with occassional forays into the reasons for (and philosophy of) skepticism in general. And not to be missed are David’s reports on New Age expos, which highlight the general mentality of the proponents of quite a lot of pseudoscience.
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What's New in The Kil Report
Free the Glutens, or When a Cookie isn't Just a Cookie
By Michelle Shires
Posted on: 10/23/2011
Updated on: 10/24/2011
Michelle Shires shows us that free isn't always free, even in nutrition and health.
Read entire article...
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- I Am the Very Model of a Skeptic Evangelical
Kil should think twice before quitting his day job.
- A Few Words About Creation Science
Several observations about scientific creationists, and the people who lead them.
- On BEING A SKEPTIC You don't have to be a rocket scientist
Everybody needs some amount of skepticism, and it isn't tremendously difficult to learn.
- The Skeptic Friend's visit to the ICR
Several of the Skeptic Friends took a trip to the Institute for Creation Research's museum, and had some mimosa-fueled fun, including a photo op with one of the greats.
- Faith
Everybody has some amount of faith in something, the differences between us are simply a matter of what or who one believes.
- Evil Skeptic and a Visit to Awareness 2000
Kil recounts the origins of the Evil Skeptic, and reports on a field trip in which he finds tachyons, noni, oxygen, harmony and a stumped psychic.
- Crown Books
Does this bookseller actually believe this stuff?
- More on Crown Books
It's hard to believe what you can put in an advertisement these days.
- Wellness in the New Age: an Expensive Obsession
Apparently, the New Age has become as commercialized as Christmas!
- TAM4
Flying, Foolish Behavior, Smart People, Food and Coffee.
- A Brief History of the Skeptic Friends Network
How did the Skeptic Friends Network come to exist?
- Ms Christel
Stringing the scammers along, tra-la!
- Time Warner Cable: Trick or Treat?
Kil girds his loins to do battle with a modern-day monster.
- Come & Receive your Miracle: A Sunday Afternoon at a Robert Tilton Crusade
Can I get an "amen?" Please? Someone? Anyone?
- TAM5
An epic! Two years in production! One to write it and then sit on it. Then one to sit on it and then edit it.
- Evil Skeptic II: A visit to The Conscious Living Expo
The Evil Skeptic takes another field trip, finds all sorts of wonderous things, has a fantastic conversation, and we're pretty sure he avoided the doppelganger lizards.
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Table of Contents
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