When people to claim be experts, we expect them to be knowledgeable and reasonable concerning their area of expertise. It is presumed (generally speaking) that a doctor actually wants and intends to help you, a statesman (as opposed to a politician!) seeks the good of the country, a salesperson wants to sell the best product they have for you, (If they are a Mike Lindell type), and that faith leaders want to better both their lives and your life.
Now we have all seen charlatans in all these areas, especially when a crisis hits.
Comparing Dr. Scott Atlas' recommended approach to handling the COVID 19 Crisis to Dr. Anthony Fauci's is an enlightening study in itself, especially in light of Fauci's history. But Dr. Fauci's history was covered up, he was portrayed as a hero when a close look at facts and logic proved him to be a villain. This is why we need to convince people not simply to believe us about these matters, but to reason for themselves. This is the purpose for this post.
The first place to start is the nature of truth: (Norman Geisler points this out in I Don't Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist, which he co authored with Frank Turek) Here are some truths about Truth, from his book.
-
Truth is discovered by men, not invented by them. Truth exists independent of our knowledge of it, e.g. Gravity existed before Newton's discovery of it. The same applies to the Laws of Thermodynamics, and other truths.
-
Truth Is Trans- Cultural - From 2 + 2 = 4, to the Earth is a sphere, truth is truth where ever you are, regardless of what your culture might have to (or even might still!) say about it.
-
Truth itself is unchangeable, though what we believe about it may change. At one time, many believed the world was flat -- but it has been a sphere all along.
-
Beliefs do not change the truth, no matter how sincerely held. Many sincerely believed the earth was flat, only to be proven wrong. For a more recent example, many believed that Fauci's recommendations were correct, we are seeing the devastating consequences already. This reminded me of the old chemistry warning in poem form:
Johnny went and took a drink,
Now Johnny is no more,
What he thought was H2O
Was H2SO4
-
Truth is not affected by the attitude of the one professing it: An arrogant person telling the truth doesn't make it any less true. A humble person telling what is false doesn't make what is false true.
-
All Truths are absolute truths: even those that appear relative are really absolute. (e.g.) "I. Frank Turek, feel warm on November 20,2003." may appear to be a relative statement, but it is actually absolutely true for everyone, everywhere that Frank Turek had the sensation of warmth on November 20, 2003."
In Short: Contradictory beliefs are possible - Contradictory truths are not.
This causes us to arrive at the Law of Non-contradiction:
If A is true, then non-A cannot be true at the same time and manner.
The way I heard it . . .
"Here lies our friend, dear Jerry
With us he is no more
For what he thought was H20
Was H2SO4"
. . . but that was over 70 years ago.