(November 3, 2021 at 9:52 pm)Spongebob Wrote: One of the primary characteristics of hoaxers and promoters of pseudo-science is to accuse everyone else of being a shill for something they don't trust. Just sayin'.
Gamers are the worst about this. There is an online card game I play, so (of course) there are theories flying around about the broken/rigged shuffle algorithm. But anyone who scrutinizes those claims or questions them is a "fanboi" or a "shill." Like... I never once gave a fuck about the integrity of this card game or the shuffler. I was just questioning claims.
If anthropologists want to learn about the origins of religious beliefs, all they need to do is create an online card game with a working shuffler. Then observe forum posts about that game. I think an unknown causal chain + apophenia are the primary ingredients for religious belief.