About Me

My name is Elizabeth McRae.

I’m an actress and a skeptic.  I have been skeptical about a lot of things over the years, but in the last few years I have become much more involved in this so-called ‘skeptical movement’.  I rebelled against the mental laziness of post-modernism and the vague spirituality that had replaced my religious upbringing.  I stopped describing myself as “agnostic” or “not religious, but spiritual” and started calling myself an atheist and a Secular Humanist.  I am, however, still somewhat of an idealist.

I believe that people have the potential to be truly great.  I believe that the so-called “Golden Rule” is the best rule to live by, not because of a belief in a god or any spiritual fantasy, but because the evidence supports it. I believe that we don’t have to sacrifice technology to live in harmony with the Earth, in fact technology is essential to our future. And I believe that the scientific method is the best tool we have to unveil the truth about the universe.  I love the idea of sustainable communities.  I hate living in the suburbs.

Skeptopia is a word I made up because I thought that an intentional community made up of fellow skeptics and humanists would be someplace I’d like to create and live in. Now I think Skeptopia is an unachievable dream. I think skepticism is better as a tool within a general philosophy rather than a philosophy on its own, and that intentional communities would be more interesting if the people in them shared the same values, but different backgrounds and beliefs.

Skeptopia has become a vision of the future. A future where oppression, religion, pseudoscience and superstition take a backseat to reason and free thought. Where cultural awareness and sensitivity don’t get in the way of teaching critical thinking and science to those who need it most.