wellness center

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

We Know More Facts But Are We More Rational Than The Ancients?
Thursday May 15, 2008

Current DR: May 15-17. Coming May 18: Ethics In Action

In her best-seller, The Age of American Unreason, Susan Jacoby makes a case that the US is gripped by a "virulent irrationality." Fundamentalist religion and junk science are flourishing, along with variations of "junk thought." Jacoby: "The mentally enfeebled American public is easily manipulated by flimsy symbolism, whether it's George Bush's bumbling, accented speaking style or the successful campaign by right-wing ideologues to smear liberals as snooty elites. Unable to grasp even the basic principles of statistics or the scientific method, Americans gullibly buy into a cornucopia of bogus notions, from recovered memory syndrome to intelligent design to the anti-vaccination movement."

Jacoby believes an American norm is to distrust those who are knowledgeable about "ideas, reason, logic, evidence, and precise language." Could this be true? If so, how did this tradition ever come about? Yike - we're in trouble.

This anti-critical thinking mindset is exacerbated as never before by "an ignorant popular culture of video images and unremitting noise that leaves no room for contemplation or logic." Vast numbers of people no longer read books, concentrate on anything significant for more than a few minutes and thus, don't really think critically anymore in a manner consistent with reason and free inquiry. Yike, again. What chance is there for REAL wellness if Jacoby is right about this awful trend?

Given the level of rationality as described by Ms. Jacoby, I wonder how many folks today would even understand the humor in this glorious line by the late, great "Uncle Miltie" (Milton Berle): "We should be grateful to Thomas Edison, without whom we would be sitting around watching television by candlelight."

Maybe a national effort to promote critical thinking would mitigate this unfortunate trend of poor reasoning Jacoby described in The Age of American Unreason.

What is critical thinking? It simply refers to the way in which data, assertions and information is processed. At least most people today, uninformed as many are, still know more than the ancients. Most have a better idea about the approximate age of the Earth. Most surely know more about astronomy, biology, geology, history, psychology, philosophy and other arts and sciences than the best minds of the millennia before our own.

Let's try to look on the bright side here. Don't compare Americans with contemporary Europeans or Australians, Brits or Kiwis. Compare us with the ancients - and I think we come out looking pretty good!

Let's begin the recovery from being really dumb about thinking things through by emphasizing reason in REAL wellness promotions. No need to follow any particular protocols or rely or experts -- the basic skills are readily available and easily mastered.

The following are among the many qualities that boost rationality and a reliance on reason, science, and evidence in making judgments:

A willingness to bone up a bit on the basic principles of statistics and the scientific method. Neither is all that complicated, but if unaware of the basics, you are in danger of being easily fooled by commercials, hucksters and all manner of charlatans.
A sense of wonder coupled with a recognition that our understanding of nature is incomplete and likely to remain so.
An evolutionary outlook along with an appreciation for the fact that science, while not perfect or complete, is the best instrument of knowledge that we have.
A polite but skeptical mindset.
An appreciation of the link between a populace attuned to and respectful of critical thinking and our prospects for preserving democratic forms of government.
Baloney detectors in good working order that safeguard against fraud, deception and hooey in food products, medicine, spirituality and more.
An understanding of evolution, the foundation of elementary earth science regarding the world we live in. The Earth is a lot more than 6,000 years old (closer to 4.6 billion years, actually) and definitely not flat. What's more, we are not the center of things in our own solar system or galaxy, and our galaxy is not such a big deal, either, compared with billions of others. Yes, we are related to apes. Yes, we are relatively late arrivals on the scene. One more thing, though there is much more to marvel about -- the cosmos is unimaginably vast and there is no good evidence that everything is in place for the express benefit of our species.
A willingness to respect such practices as meticulous and systematic observation.
Knowledge and practice of standards of argument (like recognizing what passes for evidence versus hearsay, testimonials, and the ability to recognize the most common forms of chicanery).
An acceptance of the fact that the burden of proof rests with those who advance claims.

Fortunately, we live in a society that, at least officially, still values reason, science, and other forms of independent thinking. We just have gotten out of the habit of practicing these qualities.

Be well. Look on the bright side and do favor reason.

Note: Parts of this essay first appeared here on February 11 and 14, 2001 in a Don's Report entitled, "Critical Thinking."

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the MENTAL DOMAIN under the skill area of effective decisions. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

Current DR: May 15-17. Coming May 18: Ethics In Action
(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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