Matrix argument

Connections List
 * Epistemology

Scope
 * The matrix argument

Essentially, there is a small possibility that we are all living in the matrix, or some evil daemon is deceiving us (Descartes), or we are in a dream. While there may be arguments to disprove this, this line of thought is only a defense in order to not believe anything. From a heart level, a person will might bring this up if they feel threatened (cognitive dissonance, threat heart, new truths require change of behavior) and they want to ignore it. But this arugument makes everything (at a basic level) unbelievable. So it's just an excuse.

This argument is not self-defeating but is close. If I cannot trust my experiences, I cannot trust the logic which gave me the idea that perhaps we are in the matrix. It does not mean we *aren't* in the matrix, there's just no reason to think so. If, by default, we trust our senses, then this is self-defeating. But if the default value for trusting senses is negative or null, then it is just fine.