Originally Posted by NW Ponderer
At the risk of returning to the topic, do you think it is a mental defect that allows uncritical thinking, or is it a conditioned response?
IMO quite a lot of fuzzy thinking is tied to confirmatory bias. Virtually anything can be taken as credible in support of a strongly held attitude.... especially if that attitude has to do with feelings of revulsion, contempt, or one's perceived enemies.

"It's not a lie if you believe it." -- George Costanza
The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves. --Bertrand Russel