Factual Truth above all... or why I argue with my self?

I know that there is nothing better than the feeling that not only are we right, but people agree with us and that makes it THE TRUTH.

But, a couple of things will definitely put a damper on it, one of them being reality.
Our opinion, is nothing more than that a coherent array of thoughts put together out of our own volition due to terminology, definitions and experiences that while, sometimes shared by others, is still OUR very own.

Going online we are bombarded every day with information from all the types of sources you can imagine, some legitimate, some not, a lot simply are there for the shock factor, and our own upbringing will easily play a part to which ones we decide to align with.

Confirmation bias is a powerful crutch.

Confirmation bias has been described as an internal "yes man"

I have been reading some post by friends, family, and just overall internet people (a sub-human interdependent state that is acquired through anonymity and the desire to be noticed), where people just go on an "I told you so GUYS! See? I was right, this article says I was and all of you weren't!!" tirade that is overwhelming to say the least.

A few months ago, a very "devout" catholic friend of mine posted a link to what appeared to be a Gay youth leader in France that was vehemently opposing the Civil Union of same sex couples as something he deemed unnecessary and "evil".

As you can imagine there are HUNDREDS of thousands of pages that may disagree with that, but he was quite proud of finding a GAY person moving against Gay marriage in France.

Another friend of mine pointed me to a female friend of hers, that found a girl who was raised by a Gay Father that totally despised and abhorred the idea that other children would have to put up with what she did, her father paraded men into the household sometimes even neglecting his children in lieu of this.

Neither of those are really anything more than people having an opinion and finding someone that agrees with them if, at all for the wrong reasons, the Gay activist fighting against Gay Marriage is doing it out of a Religious reason, not particularly because he thinks Gay people should not be together.

The girl is arguing that her PROMISCUOUS and aloof father was a bad influence for her but that would have been the case whether he was straight or not.

Today, I see someone posting an article about how marihuana DOES INDEED cause memory issues and how it should not be legalized EVAH!...

"Hey look, man, I made a bong out of my HEAD! Put the pot in this ear and suck it out of this one, go on take a hit!" -Denis Leary

Right, again confirmation bias, he hates it, he hates all types of drugs, and found the one article that agrees with his point of view.

Replace Creationist for Biased and we're GOLD!

We all do it mind you, I rather read literature that is more akin to my point of view that that which blatantly disagrees with what I like, but, I am open to peer review.

One of the things I enjoy the most out of the scientific method is that when we formulate a hypothesis, we are always prepared to have it DIS-proven as easily as proven.  Ego of course gets in the way, as it does with everything, but we are more likely to get clearer reasoning and proof this way.

I have though, been seeing a LOT more people just run wild with a "conclusion" and then seek facts to make their conclusion stand, albeit shakily so that they can look down on others.

I am not saying Guava does not cure Cancer, but using an article that came through email where the "JohN HOpskings Hospital" (sic) said that Chemotherapy was a hoax, is totally ludicrous, if you firmly believe Cancer can be cured with fruit and a balanced diet that is your prerogative, but using a clearly fabricated lie to support it, will definitely reduce credibility to your arguments.

Take time and question what you read, look at alternate sources (reputable sources if possible!) and investigate.  Taking information at face value causes a lot more issues than researching for 10 more minutes; after all, Nazi Germany found studies where the Übermensch were a "proven" reality, and we all know how THAT turned out...