I think the key lesson in this story is the author's willingness to do the work. IMO it's not enough to be skeptical; you also should have a set of criteria by

I think the key lesson in this story is the author's willingness to do the work. IMO it's not enough to be skeptical; you also should have a set of criteria by which you'll be satisfied, and be willing to go try to satisfy those criteria yourself. I don't think that merely pointing out a lack of citation is sufficient as a counterargument.