--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In principle, skeptics are neither…" description: "\"In principle, skeptics are neither closed-minded nor cynical. We are curious but cautious.\" — Michael Shermer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/michael-shermer-2567_cautious_in-principle-skeptics-are-neither-closed_456858.jpg" --- # In principle, skeptics are neither closed-minded nor… ![“In principle, skeptics are neither closed-minded nor cynical. We are curious but cautious.” quote by Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/michael-shermer-2567_cautious_in-principle-skeptics-are-neither-closed_456858.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/michael-shermer-2567_cautious_in-principle-skeptics-are-neither-closed_456858.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/michael-shermer-2567_cautious_in-principle-skeptics-are-neither-closed_456858.jpg) > “In principle, skeptics are neither closed-minded nor cynical. We are curious but cautious.” [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Skeptics balance curiosity with caution, avoiding both dogma and cynicism. **In simple terms:** Skeptics stay curious but careful. Key Takeaway Question, don’t dismiss. Themes skepticism curiosity critical thinking Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - research - debate - media consumption - personal beliefs Key Concepts epistemology open-mindedness Questions to Reflect On - How do you keep curiosity alive while staying critical? - When does caution become cynicism? A Different Perspective Caution can hinder open exploration if overapplied. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cautious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cautious/) [Closed minded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closed-minded/) [Cynical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) [Principle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principle/) [Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles/) [Skeptic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptic/) [Skepticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skepticism/) [Skeptics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptics/) ## Related quotes > [Scientists are skeptics. It's unfortunate that the word 'skeptic' has taken on other connotations in the culture involving nihilism and cynicism. Really, in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/scientists-are-skeptics-it-s-unfortunate-that-the-word-skeptic-has/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [... In a free society, skeptics are the watchdogs against irrationalism - the consumer advocates of ideas. Debunking is not simply the divestment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/in-a-free-society-skeptics-are-the-watchdogs-against-irrationalism/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [Skeptics question the validity of a particular claim by calling for evidence to prove or disprove it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/skeptics-question-the-validity-of-a-particular-claim-by-calling-for/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [There is nothing more dangerous than a humiliated man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/there-is-nothing-more-dangerous-than-a-humiliated-man/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Closed minded people piss me off. Change is inevitable. Embrace it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/closed-minded-people-piss-me-off-change-is-inevitable-embrace-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [MCs want to represent how it is on their streets. But many of the younger ones are closed-minded: they think about the image more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jme/mcs-want-to-represent-how-it-is-on-their-streets-but-many-of-the/) [Jme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jme/) > [“I'm not sure what is worse, a closed mind or a closed book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/i-m-not-sure-what-is-worse-a-closed-mind-or-a-closed-book/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [I met so many young girls and even older women who had literally been through so much that I couldn't even imagine. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/i-met-so-many-young-girls-and-even-older-women-who-had-literally-been/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [Sometimes, people can be extraordinarily judgmental and closed-minded to anyone different or special, which is why it's so hard for young people in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariana-grande/sometimes-people-can-be-extraordinarily-judgmental-and-closed-minded/) [Ariana Grande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariana-grande/) > [What makes me angry is closed mindedness, prejudice against those who are different from you, reveling in one's own ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jinkx-monsoon/what-makes-me-angry-is-closed-mindedness-prejudice-against-those-who/) [Jinkx Monsoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jinkx-monsoon/) > [If I'm in a good place, then I'm really open-minded to what's being presented, but if I'm in a bad place, I'm much more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-hart/if-i-m-in-a-good-place-then-i-m-really-open-minded-to-what-s-being/) [Beth Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-hart/) > [“Closed-minded people block others from speaking. If it seems like someone isn’t leaving space for the other person in a conversation, it’s possible they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/closed-minded-people-block-others-from-speaking-if-it-seems-like/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [What's the fun in approaching something closed-minded? I'm very specific; if dialogue is too on-the-nose, or there's a lot of telling and not showing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rothhaar/what-s-the-fun-in-approaching-something-closed-minded-i-m-very/) [Will Rothhaar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rothhaar/) > [I think the perception of audiences that love folk and country is they're perceived to be more closed-minded than they really are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trixie-mattel/i-think-the-perception-of-audiences-that-love-folk-and-country-is/) [Trixie Mattel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trixie-mattel/) > [“There's no perk in being closed-minded as a minority. It's never, ever, ever going to help you, ever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baratunde-r-thurston/there-s-no-perk-in-being-closed-minded-as-a-minority-it-s-never-ever/) Baratunde R. Thurston ## More by Michael Shermer > [I’m a skeptic not because I do not want to believe, but because I want to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/i-m-a-skeptic-not-because-i-do-not-want-to-believe-but-because-i-want/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [“According to Dembski, for example, “scientific creationism has prior religious commitments whereas intelligent design does not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/according-to-dembski-for-example-scientific-creationism-has-prior/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [The first-cause and prime-mover argument, brilliantly proffered by St. Thomas Aquinas in the fourteenth century (and brilliantly refuted by David Hume in the eighteenth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/the-first-cause-and-prime-mover-argument-brilliantly-proffered-by-st/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [“Mind is just a word we use to describe neural activity in the brain. No brain, no mind. We know this because if a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/mind-is-just-a-word-we-use-to-describe-neural-activity-in-the-brain/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [Through no divine design or cosmic plan, we have inherited the mantle of life's caretaker on the earth, the only home we have ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/through-no-divine-design-or-cosmic-plan-we-have-inherited-the-mantle/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [I always accepted the libertarian position of minimum regulation in the sale and use of firearms because I placed guns under the beneficial rubric…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/i-always-accepted-the-libertarian-position-of-minimum-regulation-in/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [If spirituality is the sense of awe and humility in the face of the creation, what could be more awesome and humbling than the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/if-spirituality-is-the-sense-of-awe-and-humility-in-the-face-of-the/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [We know evolution happened not because of transitional fossils such as A. natans but because of the convergence of evidence from such diverse fields…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/we-know-evolution-happened-not-because-of-transitional-fossils-such/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [“Yet basically, libertarians are for freedom and liberty for individuals, while recognizing that in order to be free we must also be protected. Your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/yet-basically-libertarians-are-for-freedom-and-liberty-for/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [Scientists like Bjorn Lomborg in The Skeptical Environmentalist have, in my opinion, properly nailed environmental extremists for these exaggerated scenarios.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/scientists-like-bjorn-lomborg-in-the-skeptical-environmentalist-have/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [When religious believers invoke miracles and acts of creation ex nihilo, that is the end of the search for them, whereas for scientists, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/when-religious-believers-invoke-miracles-and-acts-of-creation-ex/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [Darwin matters because evolution matters. Evolution matters because science matters. Science matters because it is the preeminent story of our age, an epic saga…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/darwin-matters-because-evolution-matters-evolution-matters-because/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [What can be more soul shaking than peering through a 100-inch telescope at a distant galaxy, holding a 100-million-year-old fossil or a 500,000-year-old stone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/what-can-be-more-soul-shaking-than-peering-through-a-100-inch/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [Skepticism is not a position that you stake out ahead of time and stick to no matter what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/skepticism-is-not-a-position-that-you-stake-out-ahead-of-time-and/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [“Neuroscientist David Comings drew out the larger implications of such hallucinations for the relationship between our rational and spiritual brains: The psychedelic drugs like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/neuroscientist-david-comings-drew-out-the-larger-implications-of-such/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) [Explore all 160 Michael Shermer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) ## More Cautious quotes > [When I became successful, I put up a caution. I didn't think it was fair to have the shadow of that kind of success…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-redford/when-i-became-successful-i-put-up-a-caution-i-didn-t-think-it-was/) [Robert Redford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-redford/) > [Having an eating disorder doesn't show ‘strength.’ Strength is when are able to overcome your demons after being sick and tired for so long.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/having-an-eating-disorder-doesn-t-show-strength-strength-is-when-are/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [I'm pretty cautious and not very athletic, so I've only had really dumb injuries, like sprained ankles and allergic reactions. I did have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-wilson/i-m-pretty-cautious-and-not-very-athletic-so-i-ve-only-had-really/) [Mara Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-wilson/) > [When you jump across a canyon, cautious small steps and vacillation won't work. Sometimes you just have to go for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/when-you-jump-across-a-canyon-cautious-small-steps-and-vacillation/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [Fear and caution are two different things. Be cautious - be conscious - but do not be fearful. Fear only paralyzes, while consciousness mobilizes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/fear-and-caution-are-two-different-things-be-cautious-be-conscious/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [While we are contending for our own liberty, we should be very cautious not to violate the conscience of others, ever considering that God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/while-we-are-contending-for-our-own-liberty-we-should-be-very/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgement that something is more important than fear; The brave may not live forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/courage-is-not-the-absence-of-fear-but-rather-the-judgement-that/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [Americans want a strong military but one that is extremely cautious about getting involved in war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mollie-hemingway/americans-want-a-strong-military-but-one-that-is-extremely-cautious/) [Mollie Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mollie-hemingway/) > [We old roosters must be cautious. Don't try to outwit your arteries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-perelman/we-old-roosters-must-be-cautious-don-t-try-to-outwit-your-arteries/) [S. J. Perelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-perelman/) > [The more a race is governed by its passions, the less it has acquired the habit of cautious and reasoned argument, the more intense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-more-a-race-is-governed-by-its-passions-the-less-it-has-acquired/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [The coward regards himself as cautious, the miser as thrifty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/the-coward-regards-himself-as-cautious-the-miser-as-thrifty/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [It's kind of an unwritten law, I think, being - carrying the name - George Bush. At times I ask myself, 'Am I going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-bush/it-s-kind-of-an-unwritten-law-i-think-being-carrying-the-name-george/) [George P. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-bush/) > [You ought to be extremely cautious, watchful, jealous of your liberty; for instead of securing your rights, you may lose them forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/you-ought-to-be-extremely-cautious-watchful-jealous-of-your-liberty/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [I'm not paranoid, but I am cautious. I don't drink tea with strangers, I don't fly Aeroflot and I avoid certain countries with close…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/i-m-not-paranoid-but-i-am-cautious-i-don-t-drink-tea-with-strangers-i/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [Candidates should be extremely cautious in displaying a sense of humor. If he or she tells a joke with a point, there is almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-germond/candidates-should-be-extremely-cautious-in-displaying-a-sense-of/) [Jack Germond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-germond/) [Browse all 501 Cautious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cautious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In principle, skeptics are neither closed-minded nor cynical. 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