this post was submitted on 10 Dec 2024
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Showerthoughts
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Yes, it is. It's literally how a complex society works. Do you advocate trusting nobody about anything and somehow doing all the research yourself? Would you dismiss your doctor for their "appeal to authority" when they open a medical textbook? This is silly.
It's more that I think reputation increases the probability that a claim is accurate, but it isn't proof of accuracy. That being said, even if an entity is trustworthy, I think they still have a responsibility to maintain that trust by being transparent in the claims that they make — I think they shouldn't ride on the coattails of current public opinion.
Trusting the doctor's word simply because they are a doctor would be an appeal to authority; whereas, referencing a medical textbook would be citing a source, and therefore not conjecture.