QUESTION: Can you choose what you believe?

[Güicho]

Look at the thread title. Whether it's true or not is irrelevant to the question, you can choose to ignore all objective reality contrary to a belief in order to carry on with it. Almost anyone can justify anything to themselves.

That's why I said

Choose what you believe? Yes.

I answered the question.

And, added the caveat

...doesn't make it verifiable true.

This isn't complicated.

If you want to debate the definition of verifiable or true, that's another matter.

[Kirby101]

People can, and do exactly that. One can know something, and consciously lie to themselves enough about it to believe in what's contrary to it. Or at least close enough as to make the distinction meaningless.

i see it differently. They did not choose the initial belief and their mental make up or psychology does not allow them to see it differently. They choice is unconscious.

[Personamanx]

This isn't complicated.

If you want to debate the definition of verifiable or true, that's another matter.

I started my reply before you edited to clarify your point. I have no issue with your definition of verifiable truth. We both agree that one can choose to ignore it in favor of something else.

[dancj]

I can't choose my beliefs.

I couldn't choose to believe that there are invisible wombats wearing hats all around us. The most I could do right now is pretend I do.

It's conceivable (though clearly incredibly unlikely) that evidence might come up one day which changes my belief, but that too wouldn't be a choice. Any more than I could spontaneously stop believing that I breath air.

[Kirby101]

I believe this touches on whether we have free will or not. Just to open a can of worms.

[PwrdOn]

Well your beliefs are in a large part shaped by your environment and the people around you, so while it's unlikely that you can just force yourself to believe an arbitrary idea that sprang from nowhere, if you spend enough time around people who believe in certain things, then you will inevitably come to think more along those lines as well. And so to the extent that you can choose your surroundings and the people you associate with, you can alter your belief system to some degree at least.

[Moon Ronin]

In the end Belief is brought about by how we process evidence using our own internal standard to create an apparent truth for our self. It is an involuntary action.

[Güicho]

I can't choose my beliefs.

I couldn't choose to believe that there are invisible wombats wearing hats all around us. The most I could do right now is pretend I do.

It's conceivable (though clearly incredibly unlikely) that evidence might come up one day which changes my belief, but that too wouldn't be a choice.

Yes it would be a choice; based on the verifiable evidence you would choose to change your belief to something else.
You said so yourself.
While others (for whatever reason may choose to cling to their old "belief") might choose to ignore or deny the new evidence.

You saying you have no choices but to believe, is just acknowledging you are compelled to go with the evidence.
That compulsion to follow the evidence (or not) is choice = free will.

[Moon Ronin]

Yes it would be a choice; based on the verifiable evidence you would choose to change your belief to something else.
You said so yourself.
While others (for whatever reason may choose to cling to their "belief") might choose to ignore or deny the new evidence.

Oddly enough in Belief there is a difference between personally accepted evidence and verifiable evidence. People that believe that the earth is flat reject the evidence that is contrary to their belief, and if you have ever seen Behind the Curve many of them have been ridiculed with some resulting in divorce and separation from their family. It would be easy for them to accept the evidence the earth is round and move on but many say they"can't" accept it and admitting that it would be easer for them if they just did. Its Rationalism vs. Empiricism, a person with a rationalist mind and way of thinking will not one day accept an empiricist view of the would just because he choose to. I cannot make myself process information the same way as some one else, in that I will come up with a different belief than them and, could not be made to "believe" other wise.

I believe this touches on whether we have free will or not. Just to open a can of worms.

I like to "believe" that we have some control over our own lives, That I picked French toast over pancakes this morning, to walk instead of taking the bus and that it was not some type of programing of a synapsis of the brain that caused it.

[DrNewGod]

Belief cannot fly in the face of facts. If I choose to believe that the sky is green, then my belief will be shattered every time I look at the sky.

American politics disputes this logic.

[DrNewGod]

You can choose to profess. You can even choose to live by.

But belief? To accept as a certainty, even in the face of contrary evidence?

I'm not sure what it is that truly makes us believe, so I'm not willing to call a shot about how much we've got our hands on the wheel of that one.

[Güicho]

Oddly enough in Belief there is a difference between personally accepted evidence and verifiable evidence.

Ok you are making a distinction between " personally accepted evidence"? And "verifiable evidence".?
Please explain what "personally accepted evidence" is? And if it's not verifiable, how is that evidence?
Unless you are just choosing to "believe" it.

To accept as a certainty, even in the face of contrary evidence?

If you recognize contrary evidence, you haven't accepted certainty, have you?

[Moon Ronin]

Belief cannot fly in the face of facts. If I choose to believe that the sky is green, then my belief will be shattered every time I look at the sky.

One's personal belief can totally do so. The sky is actually colorless in this you look up at the sky and see blue you are seeing the illusion that is being created by the light passing through it. If you were to go up and get a sample of the "sky" you will find that it is not blue. So I believe that the sky is colorless and my belief is not shattered every time I look up and see a blue sky.

[Güicho]

If you were to go up and get a sample of the "sky" you will find that it is not blue.

So you have verifiable (testable) evidence.
You now have a choice to believe your verifiable evidence or not.

So I believe that the sky is colorless

You have verifiable evidence the sky is colorless.
You chose to believe it or not.

my belief is not shattered every time I look up and see a blue sky.

my belief IN MY VERIFIABLE EVIDENCE is not shattered every time I look up and see a blue sky.

Fixed.

[Moon Ronin]

Ok you are making a distinction between " personally accepted evidence"? And "verifiable evidence".?
Please explain what "personally accepted evidence" is? And ff it's not verifiable, how is that evidence?
Unless you are just choosing to "believe" it.

A person's belief though it may be based in knowledge it is not based in truth (there is a difference). I'll go back to the flat earthers, they have their accepted evidence and with that they used their knowledge of the physical world to create the belief that the earth is flat. This is personal excepted evidence, I've seen one where a woman walked along the beach with a straight edged ruler and was unable to find the cure of the earth, or were a man with a sprit level in a plane to show that the plane flew straight the whole time. Next is the verifiable evidence such as images of earth from space, the mechanics of gravity and a whole mountain of other evidence, that is all rejected by the flat earth believers. It would take a rewiring of the thought process to make many of them believe that the earth is round and accept the evidence to contradict their belief. It not that they don't choose to believe it, it that it does not fit into the way that they process the evidence to apply it to their knowledge.

The next argument would be to would be a choice to increase the knowledge, they work hard at it but go the other way if proving their belief. If you get the chance watch Behind the Curve on Netflix. Anyway evidence for a some ones's belief does not have to be factual provable evidence for one to accept it. It has more to do with how the brain process the information and is applied through a persons knowledge. This is influenced by as PwrdOn said by society and environment but it is not limited to that, our biology and psychology also play a part. Of course knowledge can change and for some that can change there belief... why are some people more open minded that others, is that a choice?

So to answer the question: Walking down a beach with a ruler to show that there is not curve of the earth is evidence, its just not verifiable as it does not take in account many other factors. Yet the woman's personal views of the world accepted in to her belief while rejecting that other factors may prove it false.

“I didn’t choose flat Earth. Flat Earth chose me.” Mark Sargent