Skepticism

Skepticism is the view that we cannot have knowledge (or cannot have knowledge of a particular domain). CF rejects skepticism as self-undermining and incompatible with error-correction.

Why CF rejects skepticism

1. It can't be acted on consistently. A skeptic who refuses all action dies; a skeptic who acts anyway is no skeptic.
2. It concedes too much to dogmatism. Skepticism says we can't know, but the rational response to fallibility is we can have fallible knowledge, not we can't know anything.
3. It blocks learning. If nothing can be known, why try error-correction?
4. It's self-refuting. "We can't know anything" is itself a knowledge claim.

The CF middle path

CF, with CR, takes a third way between authoritarianism (we can have certain knowledge) and skepticism (we can have no knowledge):

• We can have knowledge — but it's fallible.
• We cannot have certainty — but we don't need it.
• We act on non-refuted plans — and stay open to criticism.

"Fallible knowledge is possible, which avoids authoritarianism and skepticism." — criticalfallibilism.com