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Stating virtually anything in the form of “but the truth is X” or “I know X to be true” is very arrogant IMO. “The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in
by arubania2 5y ago
Stating virtually anything in the form of “but the truth is X” or “I know X to be true” is very arrogant IMO.
“The fundamental cause of the trouble is that in the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt.” - Bertrand Russell
That said I do realize his goal is to find people thinking outside the box and not afraid to speak their mind, it’s just that he could have phrased it better.
- xibalba 5y agoThen all of the greatest scientists in human history were arrogant (by your judgement). So what? Progress and truth are much, much more important than fitting in and pleasing others’ sense of propriety.
- quixoticaxolotl 5y agoThat's not what the parent comment was saying - they're communicating that presuming to know the truth with complete confidence is arrogant, not that actual knowledge of truth (i.e. expertise) is arrogant.
- arubania2 5y agoNo reasonable scientist has ever claimed that their theory is 100% correct and that it is an objective truth. Scientific theories are merely our best approximations of how the world works. Usually it is the anti-scientific drivel that is full of assertions and absolute statements, which is also what makes it so popular, especially among the less educated crowd. I agree that making progress is of utmost importance, but the concept of truth is much more nuanced and, imo, difficult to define in objective terms.
- dgellow 5y ago"I have reasons to believe X" (1) vs "I know the truth X" (2). 1 sounds less arrogant than 2 IMHO and is what I would expect a scientific minded person to say. That makes it way simpler to discuss the actual reasons to believe X, without necessarily going against the individual who believes X.