The "empirical self" in Buddhism

Is it right to say that ***all*** Buddhists both do and don't believe in the "empirical self", as in the conscious mind and its concomitants? And in order I might make sense of your answer, can the latter "not self" be thought of as an absence of any conscious mind from reality itself? Finally, does that reality include or consist of the Buddha and how can we unenlightened beings confirm that, besides confirming suchness, when it seems we cannot confirm suchness is known? --- Peter Harvey in the selfless mind says: > an empirical self strictly speaking neither exists nor does not exist