LANGUAGE WARNING: This blog has stronger language in it than I normally use, specifically the repeated use of the word "Bullshit". I'm following Harry G. Frankfurt's usage of the word because I find his technical definition helpful, and because I think the word is appropriate to convey my depth of feeling on the subject.
I'm sorry for any offense, but please know I don't use it lightly.
I'm sorry for any offense, but please know I don't use it lightly.
This post isn't about politics, or at least not just about politics. Having said that, these thoughts have definitely been pushed to the front of my mind by the state of American political discourse. The spark that finally got me writing was this Ted Talk, although you'll see that my thoughts drift elsewhere very quickly.
"We can know the answer to this question. [...] It's not going to be easy. It's a very slow process. You have to keep experimenting, and sometimes ideology has to be trumped by practicality. And sometimes what works somewhere doesn't work elsewhere. So it's a slow process, but there is no other way."
The specifics of Esther Duflo's talk are great, but it's the mindset behind it that I want to delve into.
So many decisions are made in government, in business, and in everyday life, based on ideology and habit rather than an actual concern for the truth. But the truth is the only thing that matters. Your opinion doesn't matter, and my opinion doesn't matter. Nothing that can be empirically tested should be a matter of opinion. We can test, and we can know.
If we want to accomplish anything meaningful in life, we have to be more concerned with reality than we are about being clever or winning arguments. And after you've done your experiments, and you find the truth, you have to act on it. It doesn't matter whose idea it was; if it works, do it. And it doesn't matter how "right" it feels; if it doesn't work, stop.
So many decisions are made in government, in business, and in everyday life, based on ideology and habit rather than an actual concern for the truth. But the truth is the only thing that matters. Your opinion doesn't matter, and my opinion doesn't matter. Nothing that can be empirically tested should be a matter of opinion. We can test, and we can know.
If we want to accomplish anything meaningful in life, we have to be more concerned with reality than we are about being clever or winning arguments. And after you've done your experiments, and you find the truth, you have to act on it. It doesn't matter whose idea it was; if it works, do it. And it doesn't matter how "right" it feels; if it doesn't work, stop.
It's not even a problem if people disagree on the meaning of the results. Differing perspectives help us see the truth more clearly. What I do find worrying is when people have no concern for the truth at all. To paraphrase Harry G. Frankfurt's 'On Bullshit', even a liar cares about the truth, because he wants to hide it. But there is another class of people (“Bullshitters”) who don't care at all if what they say is true or false. A liar looks up and sees the blue sky, but claims that it's green. A Bullshitter doesn't look up at all, and says whatever he wants. And he can never be wrong, because the things he says aren't statements about the truth, they're just statements. Richard Nixon was a liar; Donald Trump is a Bullshitter.
George Washington Said What?
I once saw an acquaintance post a picture on Facebook, with a quote supposedly by George Washington. It read:
"A free people ought not only be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government." (emphasis mine)
According to MountVernon.org, the portion of that quote actually attributable to George Washington is:
"A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined."
That’s it. The rest of it was made up. A quick Google search could have confirmed as much for anyone who cared to check. And in fact, somebody did check, but the original poster’s response to being told that he was putting words into Mr. Washington’s mouth was, essentially: “Oh yeah? Well, it’s still true!” Here's another example, from another side of the political spectrum:
When George W. Bush was running for his second term, Barbra Streisand used the following “Shakespeare” quotation while speaking at a Democratic fundraiser:
When George W. Bush was running for his second term, Barbra Streisand used the following “Shakespeare” quotation while speaking at a Democratic fundraiser:
"Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword.
"It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind.
"And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry.
"Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded with patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader, and gladly so. How do I know?
"For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar."
When it was pointed out to her that this was not, in fact, a quote from Julius Caesar, but was written by someone trying to make a point on the internet, she responded:
"The authorship of this is important. But it doesn't detract from the fact that the words themselves are powerful and true and beautifully written."
I respectfully disagree with Ms. Streisand on that second point. If the source of a quote truly didn't matter, why bother with the misattribution in the first place? Whoever started the misquote must have seen something to gain by it. For better or worse, we as humans give more weight to words from a respected source, and just as a trusted source adds something to the words, they lose something when you know the source is unreliable.
The originators of these misattributions are guilty of lying. But by continuing to defend the lies in the face of the truth, my acquaintance, and to a lesser extent Ms. Streisand are guilty of Bullshitting, or in other words, acting as though the truth were not even important.
Similarly, anyone who uses "Nazi" as an insult rather than refering to a National Socialist (or member of a similar movement) is a Bullshitter. Same goes for misuses of "fascist", "socialist", and "Muslim". Those words have meanings, and to throw words around as if those meanings don't matter is an affront to language, and an insult to the things those words actually refer to. Confucius was very adamant about this.
The originators of these misattributions are guilty of lying. But by continuing to defend the lies in the face of the truth, my acquaintance, and to a lesser extent Ms. Streisand are guilty of Bullshitting, or in other words, acting as though the truth were not even important.
Similarly, anyone who uses "Nazi" as an insult rather than refering to a National Socialist (or member of a similar movement) is a Bullshitter. Same goes for misuses of "fascist", "socialist", and "Muslim". Those words have meanings, and to throw words around as if those meanings don't matter is an affront to language, and an insult to the things those words actually refer to. Confucius was very adamant about this.
Knights and Knaves
Liars are like the knaves in the classic 'Knights and Knaves' logic puzzle. Their goal is to fool you, and once you know that, you can defend yourself. Confront a liar with the truth, and they'll give up. They've failed in their goal, and the game's over.
Bullshitters, on the other hand, are like the knaves from the version of the puzzle that shows up in the movie Labyrinth:
Bullshitters, on the other hand, are like the knaves from the version of the puzzle that shows up in the movie Labyrinth:
This time, the knaves don't seem to have any actual idea which door is the correct one. They answer Sarah's question (eventually), but it's clear they don't even understand it. They don't even fully grasp their own rules. They're not trying to fool her, they may not be trying to do anything. They may just be talking for the sake of talking. Their answers are worse than lies, they're meaningless. They might as well be spouting gibberish.
Plus -and this is just a tangent on logic puzzles, I'll get back to my actual point in a minute- the fact that the guards themselves were the ones to explain the rules in the first place brings up the same paradox as this classic Yu-Gi-Oh! episode with a similar premise (skip to 1:37 if you don't want the game explained to you again):
Plus -and this is just a tangent on logic puzzles, I'll get back to my actual point in a minute- the fact that the guards themselves were the ones to explain the rules in the first place brings up the same paradox as this classic Yu-Gi-Oh! episode with a similar premise (skip to 1:37 if you don't want the game explained to you again):
The Paradox Brothers are liars. They know the truth, and they're trying to manipulate people with that knowledge. The Labyrinth guards don't know the truth, and they don't care that they don't know. When the Paradox Brothers are confronted with the truth later in the episode, they give up; but you get the feeling that those Labyrinth guards wouldn't even understand the concept of having lied to you. Their connection to reality is so loose, they might as well be insane.
(Just for kicks, here's another variation on the puzzle. And another one. This is a popular set up. Anyway, back to the discussion at hand.)
(Just for kicks, here's another variation on the puzzle. And another one. This is a popular set up. Anyway, back to the discussion at hand.)
Lies, Damned Lies, and Made Up Statistics
How about a concrete real world example: a few years ago, Congressman Jon Kyl claimed that Planned Parenthood's business is 90% abortions. I don't care what you think about Planned Parenthood or what they do, that number is wrong. It's false. It's the opposite of true. It's a made up statistic with no basis in reality.
The Daily Show segments on this incident are some of their best work, if nothing else because the situation is so blatantly farcical already. (I have no idea how Wyatt Cynac keeps a straight face through this second one.) If you watch any of the videos I'm posting here, please watch these ones:
The Daily Show segments on this incident are some of their best work, if nothing else because the situation is so blatantly farcical already. (I have no idea how Wyatt Cynac keeps a straight face through this second one.) If you watch any of the videos I'm posting here, please watch these ones:
Get More: Comedy Central,Funny Videos,Funny TV Shows
That 90% statistic is a lie. Acting like that lie doesn't matter, is Bullshit.
Based on that response, I have no reason to believe that Kyl was even aware of the actual statistic before speaking. He certainly doesn't seem care about it now. The facts are irrelevant to him. And that, to me, is the unforgivable sin. Once you decide that truth doesn't matter, that facts are irrelevant, and that you won't be bound by reality, it's over. You can't be reasoned with, and the rest of us would be better off to leave you alone in your tiny, irrelevant bubble.
But, for some reason, we don't seem to do that. We keep electing politicians who don't care about the truth. We keep watching and listening and reposting their Bullshit. (I'm trying not to cite recent examples, because I don't want to give them any more bandwidth than they already have.) I'm not going to blame the politicians or even the media for this one, they're only the symptoms. We the people are the root of the problem, and we can be the source of the cure.
Based on that response, I have no reason to believe that Kyl was even aware of the actual statistic before speaking. He certainly doesn't seem care about it now. The facts are irrelevant to him. And that, to me, is the unforgivable sin. Once you decide that truth doesn't matter, that facts are irrelevant, and that you won't be bound by reality, it's over. You can't be reasoned with, and the rest of us would be better off to leave you alone in your tiny, irrelevant bubble.
But, for some reason, we don't seem to do that. We keep electing politicians who don't care about the truth. We keep watching and listening and reposting their Bullshit. (I'm trying not to cite recent examples, because I don't want to give them any more bandwidth than they already have.) I'm not going to blame the politicians or even the media for this one, they're only the symptoms. We the people are the root of the problem, and we can be the source of the cure.
Let It Begin With Me
In order to do that, we only need to do one thing: care about the truth. That's it. The truth matters, and we need to treat it that way. Fact check before you speak (and before you post, or repost). Hold other people accountable for the accuracy of what they say, and be willing to be held accountable in return. Don't just assume that anyone who disagrees with you are stupid, evil, or badly informed. Listen to them. Really listen. Patronize news organizations who hold themselves accountable. Vote for politicians who will do the same.
Nobody has to be perfect, and when you screw up, you have to acknowledge it. Don't Bullshit. Don't defend it, don't hedge, and don't act like the truth doesn't matter. It's hard not to get defensive when you're challenged, but if there's one skill that could save our public (and private) discourse, this is it.
Nobody has to be perfect, and when you screw up, you have to acknowledge it. Don't Bullshit. Don't defend it, don't hedge, and don't act like the truth doesn't matter. It's hard not to get defensive when you're challenged, but if there's one skill that could save our public (and private) discourse, this is it.
We need to be especially careful to question anything that seems to support what we already believe. Confirmation bias makes it easier to find fault with ideas that contradict our point of view, but that makes it so much more important to be vigilant. Just because you believe in Bigfoot doesn't mean you have to accept the validity of every Bigfoot sighting.
In fact, believers have the most to gain from being skeptical. That's why the Catholic church does very careful investigations before declaring something a miracle. It's very bad press to accept a miracle that later turns out to be a hoax. Weak or spurious arguments only give ammunition to our opponents, and derail discussion from our actual position. One strong, well-supported argument is worth one-hundred that don't hold up under scrutiny.
In fact, believers have the most to gain from being skeptical. That's why the Catholic church does very careful investigations before declaring something a miracle. It's very bad press to accept a miracle that later turns out to be a hoax. Weak or spurious arguments only give ammunition to our opponents, and derail discussion from our actual position. One strong, well-supported argument is worth one-hundred that don't hold up under scrutiny.
Final Thoughts
So, in conclusion: the truth matters, and anyone who thinks otherwise isn't worth listening to.
Corollary: if we want to be worth listening to, we need to care about the truth. We need to stay informed, be skeptical, and stay aware of our own biases. We need to care more about being right than we care about seeming right.
And if you have any corrections to this post? I'd be happy to hear them. Well, no, I probably won't be happy, because nobody likes being corrected. But I'll try my best to listen and improve, and that's a good start.
Corollary: if we want to be worth listening to, we need to care about the truth. We need to stay informed, be skeptical, and stay aware of our own biases. We need to care more about being right than we care about seeming right.
And if you have any corrections to this post? I'd be happy to hear them. Well, no, I probably won't be happy, because nobody likes being corrected. But I'll try my best to listen and improve, and that's a good start.
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