iReasoning intended audience

The main audience for this blog are my friends and family, many of whom I love dearly and care for. And it often seems strange to me that despite their demonstrated skepticism in many areas of life there are still some myths and superstitions that they readily entertain in their minds as credible.

This has lead to a process of self-inquiry about what is it, exactly, that make us believe that something is true? For something to be true, does there need to be evidence? if yes, then why do so many of us demonstrate faith in beliefs that are neither reasonable nor for which any credible evidence exists?

Off the top of my head, I intend to tackle notions that plague our society from relatively benign falsehoods like astrology to the more dangerous belief systems like religion that affect public policy. I don't intend to be offensive for the sake of being offensive. I intend to use reason, evidence and understanding to get the point across except perhaps when the intention is to be provocative or funny. If in any way what I say here offends your sensibilities, by all means, please bring it to my attention and, at the very least, I will promise you a fair debate. Lets reason together!