How true should things be for you to trust them or use them? (VWIP) (70) - Incrium

I think i have epistemological learned helplessness (link scott) about a lot of things. what is true pragmatically?

How true should things be for you to trust them or use them?

How to question things we read more?

It’s really easy to believe things. Really really easy. Personally if I read anything from Woz, I’ll just assume he’s right. And probably for most other things I read (unless I can see a very direct contradiction to things I belive). This seems bad because I probably trust 95% of the things I read when I have no real clue how true things are.

I’m not sure there’s a way to be constantly skeptical of everything I read that isn’t a pain but I do think there’s another answer: thinking probabilistically.

I’m not really sure how to do this to be honest. It’s a bit easier to use it as: things are mostly correct except when they aren’t and accept some things you read are gonna be wrong.

But that doesn’t improve ability to think freely when reading things instead of following what the author says. I’m curious if other people have had this same thought and have a solution. Please post in comments if so.

analogies are good