Facts don’t matter

[Purron]

Maybe that's why so many people refuse to change their opinions when presented with facts. Pot smoking when young.

I disagree and will stand by my opinion regardless of what evidence anyone presents

 

[ls99]

Wait a minute, maybe I need to re-read this in a whole new (knew?) light!

Are you saying that the "you know"s in those quotes are used the way some people say "ummmm", or "like" in a conversation as they gather their thoughts? Since the subject was about how what you know affects your judgment, I thought those were part of the sentence construction!


As in: There are things we know we know, things we know we don't know, and things we don't know we don't know. Ya' know?

-ERD50

I don't know what information he intended to convey, did not read the rest of the story.


OTOH there are known knowns and known unknowns... or something like that.

 

[ls99]

And I know, I know, I know...

YouTube - Bill Withers - Ain't No Sunshine

Right!

 

[BigNick]

This is odd. Why should we be surprised or consider it 'unfortunate' that we rely on what we already know to be true? Do I have to burn myself on the stove every day, or do I accept that fire is hot? Yes, it really is that silly.

Because we have empirical evidence, which anyone can verify, that fire is hot. The OP is not about things which we believe because they are true and thus a handy shortcut ("hmmm, I wonder if this fire is as hot as the last 100"); it's about things which are not true, or at least, not supported by any evidence, but we insist on continuing to believe in them.

It goes beyond simple confirmation bias, too. Study after study has shown that, once people have acquired a certain level of belief in something (typically something irrational), that they will treat arguments against their belief - including arguments supported by objective, independently-verifiable evidence - as tending to prove their belief. We're all really that screwed up, to one extent or another.

 

[ERD50]

ERD50 said: This is odd. Why should we be surprised or consider it 'unfortunate' that we rely on what we already know to be true? Do I have to burn myself on the stove every day, or do I accept that fire is hot? Yes, it really is that silly.

Because we have empirical evidence, which anyone can verify, that fire is hot. The OP is not about things which we believe because they are true and thus a handy shortcut ("hmmm, I wonder if this fire is as hot as the last 100"); it's about things which are not true, or at least, not supported by any evidence, but we insist on continuing to believe in them.

Oh, I 'get' that, I guess I'm just saying it is all a matter of degrees (fire, hot, degrees, get it? ). We go from not questioning 'facts', to being very 'sticky' with what we 'know' and pretty 'sticky' with what we 'think we know'. I still think that keeps us out of having to re-think everything all the time, which would drive us nuts.

I guess the key is to be aware of it, and open up to it when the time/place is right and being too 'sticky' might be detrimental. And one of those times is often the discussions on this forum.

-ERD50

 

[GregLee]

Study after study has shown that, once people have acquired a certain level of belief in something (typically something irrational), that they will treat arguments against their belief - including arguments supported by objective, independently-verifiable evidence - as tending to prove their belief.

Well, of course. The exception proves the rule.

 

[NW-Bound]

Study after study has shown that, once people have acquired a certain level of belief in something (typically something irrational), that they will treat arguments against their belief - including arguments supported by objective, independently-verifiable evidence - as tending to prove their belief. We're all really that screwed up, to one extent or another.

Yes. It is called indoctrination.