Sagan also didn't write in an age of massive disinformation and misinformation. It's one of the critical issues of our time; it's important to do something about it, which includes pointing it out when it's happening.
That shows a great degree of ignorance about Carl Sagan. He did this several times - and one of the people he did this with later became his wife.
> Sagan also didn't write in an age of massive disinformation and misinformation.
Sorry, but I was alive when he was, and I had to deal with a similar level of nonsensical beliefs as I do today. The main difference I see is that there is more awareness about this phenomenon today.
> it's important to do something about it, which includes pointing it out when it's happening.
Sorry, but this is mere post hoc justification for your behavior. I would recommend you read the book "The Righteous Mind" which goes into the psychology behind it.
If one merely finds flaws in his hypothesis, he'll realize he's wrong, but will be no closer to the truth.
Pointing out that he hasn't backed up his theory is reasonable, but it doesn't bring him closer to his goal.
A relevant quote from Carl Sagan:
"If you’re only skeptical, then no new ideas make it through to you. You never learn anything. You become a crotchety misanthrope convinced that nonsense is ruling the world. (There is, of course, much data to support you.) Since major discoveries at the borderlines of science are rare, experience will tend to confirm your grumpiness. But every now and then a new idea turns out to be on the mark, valid and wonderful. If you’re too resolutely and uncompromisingly skeptical, you’re going to miss (or resent) the transforming discoveries in science, and either way you will be obstructing understanding and progress. Mere skepticism is not enough."
He also gave some good examples from the history of science of theories that eventually turned out to be true, but were originally on shaky (or even faulty) grounds for a long period of time. A culture of skepticism would likely have killed those theories. Unfortunately, I noted only this quote and not the examples.