# Is there anything that cannot be criticized, or cannot be treated with scepticism ... **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 25, 2012, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964 "2012-04-25T22:46:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Otkakonmiskilic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Otkakonmiskilic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otkakonmiskilic)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/1 "2012-04-25T22:46:27Z")
Is there anything that cannot be criticized, cannot be treated with scepticism, or/and cannot be doubted by? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/2 "2012-04-25T22:51:52Z")
No ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/3 "2012-04-25T22:53:06Z")
What do you mean by “cannot”? It is clearly physically possible to doubt anything, I would say it is ethically and logically okay so long as it is done with intellectual honesty, but in many cultures some items are off limits if you don’t want to get whupped. ---
**Author:** ![Stelios](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Stelios](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stelios)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/4 "2012-04-25T22:59:49Z")
Maybe mathematics? ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/5 "2012-04-25T23:02:08Z")
I can doubt mathematics. Watch me: “I hereby doubt mathematics!” That wasn’t hard. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/6 "2012-04-25T23:03:05Z")
One thing that definitely can be criticized: One liner OPs in GD. ---
**Author:** ![Otkakonmiskilic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Otkakonmiskilic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otkakonmiskilic)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/7 "2012-04-25T23:04:41Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > What do you mean by “cannot”? It is clearly physically possible to doubt anything, I would say it is ethically and logically okay so long as it is done with intellectual honesty, but in many cultures some items are off limits if you don’t want to get whupped. We don’t even have the possibility or knowledge to criticize. Or we are sure that it is true. ---
**Author:** ![Otkakonmiskilic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Otkakonmiskilic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otkakonmiskilic)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/8 "2012-04-25T23:08:16Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > One thing that definitely can be criticized: One liner OPs in GD. Look at the threads through a screen with 100x100 display resolution rate. So you don’t see any one line thread at all. or copy what’s written in thread to a notepad file and get the windows smaller. So you don’t see any one line thread at all either. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/9 "2012-04-25T23:11:31Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > I can doubt mathematics. Watch me: “I hereby doubt mathematics!” > > That wasn’t hard. Your response just doesn’t seem to add up. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/10 "2012-04-25T23:13:30Z")
> [@Otkakonmiskilic](#): > > Is there anything that cannot be criticized, cannot be treated with scepticism, or/and cannot be doubted by? I’d draw the line at solipsism. There’s a point at which you leave scepticism and move into mental masturbation. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/11 "2012-04-25T23:13:43Z")
Gravity comes to mind. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/12 "2012-04-25T23:14:55Z")
> [@Otkakonmiskilic](#): > > Is there anything that cannot be criticized, cannot be treated with scepticism, or/and cannot be doubted by? I don’t know. I’ve seen some things that make me question (albeit momentarily) even things as obvious as Descartes “I think therefore I am”, which should be an otherwise indisputable truth, right? I think that it’s okay to be skeptical to a certain degree. We don’t have to pretend that we have some sort of omniscient ability. I will try the best that I can to hold the most rational position given the available evidence. If you come to a different conclusion that is fine. At certain points in my life I’ve felt that doubt was _not_ okay - when I did eventually doubt, the damage and the shake up was fairly life-altering (at least IMO). So now I try to be more open with my beliefs. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/13 "2012-04-25T23:15:38Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Your response just doesn’t seem to add up. Au contraire, it’s integral to the discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/14 "2012-04-25T23:21:43Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > Au contraire, it’s integral to the discussion. These one liners are getting exponentially worse. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/15 "2012-04-25T23:24:45Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > These one liners are getting exponentially worse. We need to act radically - root them out wherever they’re found! ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/16 "2012-04-25T23:35:38Z")
I think you are taking something real and adding imaginary issues to make the whole thing unnecessarily complex. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/17 "2012-04-25T23:41:15Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > These one liners are getting exponentially worse. Pretty derivative, too. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/18 "2012-04-25T23:44:28Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Pretty derivative, too. But when taken together they are surely greater than the sum of their parts. ---
**Author:** ![HoboStew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f17d59/32.png) [@HoboStew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoboStew)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/19 "2012-04-25T23:50:57Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > But when taken together they are surely greater than the sum of their parts. Cosign. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964/20 "2012-04-25T23:54:23Z")
Cogito ergo sum. (People have given quite serious consideration to this question before, you know.) > [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Gravity comes to mind. Do you mean the tendency of earthy material to seek its natural resting place at the center of the universe (Aristotle), or the centripetal push produced by an aetheric vortex (Descartes), or the inexplicable attractive force operating at a distance between masses (Newton), or the distortion of the geometry of space caused by mass (Einstein), or, well what? Maybe something no-one has though of yet. Before Newton nobody believed in some force called gravity, and we don’t believe in the force he was talking about now. Most certainly it is possible to have doubts about it, Whatever you think\* it\* may be.. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-anything-that-cannot-be-criticized-or-cannot-be-treated-with-scepticism/619964.md?page=2)