Thinking skeptically (also known as critical thinking)

"I think Assad is a dictator, madman, and a murderer of his own people."

"Who says so? how do you know?"

"The NYT, WaPp, Fox News, CNN, the State Department"

"Do you think they are reliable sources?"

"Well, I mean They are professionals. They have access to government sources. They are authorities.They wouldn't lie about something like this"

"They lied about Saddam. He had no WMDs. And BTW, have you checked any sources that say Assad is a normal head of state, like many."

"No, why?"

"Because it would help to know if someone says good things about him to test the claim. For example, no one has a good thing to say about Hitler--except his followers. Do you think his followers are reliable sources?"

"No, but everyone knows Assad is bad. . ."

"Knows or believes? Actually, there is evidence that contradicts this belief. Syrians voted in 2014: more than 85% percent for him."

"Are you saying that in order to believe a claim I have to check it against an opposite opinion or theory--or evidence?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. You can prove a claim is true by trying to falsify it. Am I making it clear?"

"Sorta.. But Why would the NYT, WaPO, etc, lie?"

"For that, you have to look at whose interests they serve. Who sponsors them? Are some of them funded by Exxon Mobil, for example?"

" I don't know"

"That is very important. Exxon was the main supplier of oil to the US army in Iraq. They had vested interests in a war against Saddam"

"So, you're saying that if Exxon saw that it could make a profit from the war, they would not allow PBS, for example, to say that Saddam was not Hitler."

"Yeah, you're getting it. To detect baloney, note the source, check it for who funds it, apply the falsification method to the claim. Later, when you have more confidence, you can ask, what are the sources' ideology? Do they condition their claims? "

"Then, what? I say that Assad is an angel?"

"No, of course not. There are no such thing as angels--or devils for that matter, but you can become a skeptic and not accept malarkey as truth just because an "authority says it."

"This looks like a lot of work."

"Yeah, but not doing this work can get people killed. Class dismissed."