The thing about my what-ifs as you call them, is that they are in many cases plausible alternatives to the conventional view.
Lots of ideas seem plausible prior to vetting them. It is simply no good coming up with ideas that at the time of conception are inconsistent with the existing evidence.
The lack of knowledge works against the absolute novice, particularly one who will not take the time to reject any of his own ideas.
I think just the alternative views I've accumulated so far, in both geology and biology, add up to a very serious challenge to the conventional view.
Yes, but the standard for evaluating 'serious challenge' is quite low, namely 'Can I maintain my own beliefs in the face of scientists saying otherwise'.
Je Suis Charlie
Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also in prison. Thoreau: Civil Disobedience (1846)
If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom, and deprecate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing up the ground, they want rain without thunder and lightning. Frederick Douglass