Are There Any Heretical Ideas That Have Merit?

 #386: In Short, Yes

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I ran across an interesting list of "heretical" ideas put together by Tyler Cowen on the Marginal Revolution blog.  I will react (in green type) to a select few, along with several others found in the post's comments:

The author first lists "partially heretical" ideas, then asks for truly heretical beliefs (they can’t be absurd, or simple insults).  He comes up with this list (I've cut it down to the most interesting):

5. ESP works.

Most would discover vague 'directions' difficult without modern GPS.  The same is true with ESP.  If you haven't experienced it, it's unimaginable.  Plus, the confounding truth --> the more one seeks to exploit ESP, the less it occurs; like the mysterious morel mushroom, it's never a sure thing--let alone a thing to boast about and thus test for.  Just believe.

7. In fact you can trust Congress to do the right thing.

This truly is heretical.  What makes it interesting is that in 50 years it may actually be vaguely correct.  Rather than a long, sorry tradition, we're likely witnessing the flameout of a few decades worth of crackpot ascendancy (1980 - 2020 --give or take an extra decade on either side).  "We now return you to your normal programming."   

11. Non-human animals suffer more than they enjoy, and it would be better if they did not exist.

Again, ridiculous.  What makes this interesting is the inability to distinguish our minds (which anticipate, think abstractly, and can thus evaluate a life's 'misery index') and the brains of animals (who, for the most part, live in the moment).  Or do they?  There's also the failure to view animals as part of an organic whole that is Nature.  

12. American TV was much better in the 1960s and 1970s.

Obviously incorrect on many counts (production values, slllooow, boring), but makes us think.  What's it about TV in those decades?  Probably a combination of universality (everyone watching the same shows), classicism (training being more rigorous) and novelty (many programming ideas have now been used).

Commenter Dave C:

People get benefits from non-scientific things like astrology because their brains evolved to extract wisdom from...oracles.

This isn't really heretical, and isn't quoted in full, but there's something interesting here.  Could there be something to self-selected 'inspiration' that benefits the mind?  It would have to outweigh the usual: "A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest."   

Commenter Mark T:

Health care is not a right.

First, we have to distinguish between: 

1) the theoretical concept of a human Right derived from basic math (When more than one mind is present, how are decisions made?  Answer: by giving equal weight to each and voting on a path forward--this equality is a Right), and 

2) the common political usage found in advanced democracies ("In this great nation everyone has a right to the basics.")

So, it's only in the second sense that health care is a right, but that's what most people mean.

Commenter asdf:

1) The best life outcomes come from following the Biblical commandments on chastity, and while this [may] never be perfectly obtained, it should be considered the societal ideal rather than scorned.

This is one-sided, but not heretical.  Logically, if one thinks of a future life partner, and pleasing them, the thing to do is arguably abstinence, but just as arguably, self-discovery.  So, following hard and fast rules is probably not the answer.  But neither is ignoring the distilled wisdom of past generations.  Ideally, one can discover without becoming prematurely entangled.

3) ...single family zoning is the only way people have to protect a middle class upbringing for their family....

Here's a thought experiment: What if a neighborhood was asked to sign off on an underground multi-story building that had its own tunnel to the nearest freeway?  So, no eyesore, no big increase in traffic; just more residents paying taxes.  And let's say this new development was in a run-down part of town, replacing abandoned, dilapidated buildings with a tidy, park like setting.  Wouldn't it get approved right away?  Yes, most likely.  Which suggests that a good deal of the resistance to multi-story developments in single family neighborhoods involves aesthetics ("eyesore", "traffic", "elbow room").

4) The War on Drugs actually isn't that bad....

It's not unusual to encounter this sentiment.  I'd say it's close to a 50/50 matter, nationally, with sentiment moving steadily against.  Eventually, more tolerant laws will be implemented.

5) MLK did not ultimately believe that people should be judged by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin.

Most reasonable people will find this heretical.  What makes it interesting is that those who only pay lip-service to Martin Luther King like to quote the "...content of their character..." line.  Unfortunately for his detractors, King had discovered universal truths (equality, non-violence, justice, freedom, progressive fairness) that ring true on the part of a vast majority.