We really prize logic, but logic works precisely by stripping away all extraneous detail to get to the logical part of the structure of the argument. But that process of stripping away is removing, from the actual phenomenon being discussed, complexity, ambiguity, nuance…and a lot of these things are really important to understanding the phenomenon. When you try to translate any kind of real-life problem into a neat logical form, you’re almost always simplifying it. We need a kind of blend–we need to use not just tools of logic (which are important and valuable–I’m not denying that) but also tools of judgement, and of inductive and abductive reasoning which can also inform.
—Julian Baggini
The good in people
I'm not one to look for the good in people. If one is good, why keep it a secret? Why make others search for it? I prefer to approach everyone as though they were neutral and to let them tell me who they are. Most waste little time in doing so.
Labels: thought
