“I am open to other possible explanations if you have them. ”
not at all. you don’t give credence to things that “don’t work” for you, be they scientific, medical, religious or communal. When it contradicts what you think you call it an agenda or pretend you didn’t hear it. And then claim you are open to alternatives but haven’t heard any. No matter how strongly someone feels about something, or wants it to work, they need to be willing and able to turn on a dime when the facts point the other way.