MaleTom wrote:

Skeptics don't believe because there is no reliable evidence. 
Skeptics are aware of how easily people can be deceived, and how
people can deceive themselves when they really want to believe
something. In short, skeptics are seeking the real truth, no matter
how dull it might be. 

Jay Glascoe <jof3r@sockpuppet.net> wrote:
Maybe you'll realize it right after you've popped you're last pimple on 
the way to becoming a "grown up", but....

Jumping to conclusions, without evidence, is an easy way to be totally
wrong. I'm well over 3 decades past adolescence. 

just how are you going to seek "real truth" with there being "no 
reliable evidence"? 

Perhaps I didn't make myself clear enough for some children reading
this newsgroup... 
There are notions that Skeptics do not believe, and the reason they do
not believe  is that those notions have no reliable evidence to
support them. The notions that Skeptics do believe have reliable
evidence to back them up. 

People can be deceived - frauds and hoaxes rely on that. 
Some people can even deceive themselves. 
Skeptics recognize the potential for deception, and strive to avoid
it. 

I see you know volumes about decieving yourself 
already.....

I certainly do. When I was a child, I deceived myself about monsters
in the closet, aliens in the attic, and once even fooled myself into
thinking I could psychically control the wind. But reality intruded, I
grew up and put away my childish fears and superstitions. 

Trust me, a skeptical life may be a bit dull, but it is wonderfully
free from  superstitious terrors. 

You just let us know when you find some "real truth" about something... 
anything...  We'll debunk it.

HAND

Oh, this is almost too easy... How about mathematics? 
2+2=4 
2x2=4

Or physics? 
Water expands when it freezes. 

Or biology? 
Genetic information for all living creatures are encoded in a double
strand of deoxy-ribonucleic acid.

Or history? 
George Washington was the first president of the United 
States of America. 

Care to "debunk" any of those?  No? 

All of these notions, and many more, are accepted as true because
there is reliable evidence to back them up. 

If you can present good reliable evidence for visiting ET's, we'll
accept it. So far, all we've seen is unverifiable tall tales, pictures
of clouds, fuzzy photos, camera defects, and blatant hoaxes. 

MT