Tim Rudolph's Chapter 3 Journal
KEY IDEA OF THE WEEK
The key idea of this week is that reason and knowledge are necessary for an intelligent philosophy of life. We have seen evidence of this in the video "What the Bleep Do We Know?" as the scientists explain about quantum physics. The scientists say that if we use reason we can grasp at deep ideas about reality and the meaning of life. The story of Amanda learning from the wedding she photographs shows us that reason is important and can change someone's life. In the reading book, the 5 Common Thinking Errors showed us how stupid people can seem when they use illogical reasoning. The 5 Steps to Critical Thinking and the Process of Knowing taught us how to use knowledge to reason logically.
3 IDEAS TO REMEMBER
1. Be aware of vague terms when debating
Critical Thinking Error #2 tells us to watch for False and Vague Premises in logic because the conclusion may be logical but the premises may be incorrect or unclear. Step #3 of the 5 Steps to Critical Thinking tells us to define our terms before making a point in an argument. These two rules help us catch mistakes in our opponents reasoning and help us revise our arguments to make them logical.
This is important to remember because I debate with my friends often and I use these rules all the time. I always watch for mistakes in my opponent's logic so that I can prove my point more easily. For example, last year my friend tried to mathematically prove that God existed. Although he got the logic right, I pointed out to him that his premises were completely false. I told him that it is impossible to logically prove anything without using true premises.
2. Ad Hominems are used often and show weakness
Critical Thinking Error #3 warns us of attacking our opponents instead of reasoning with them. Many times we find no flaws in their arguments and resort to what is referred to as mud-slinging. We try to hide our weak arguments by attacking our opponent in an attempt to distract everyone. Usually our opponents will try to defend themselves from our accusations instead of pressing their point, so Ad Hominems usually end in victory for the attacker. But if we are careful, we can reveal our opponents weaknesses by ignoring the accusation or quickly denying it and then pressing our opponent to defend his argument.
This is important to remember because politicians use Ad Hominems in debates very often. Politicians distract the audience by attacking their opponent instead of answering the question that was asked. We need to be aware of this thinking error as we watch political debates so that we don't accidentally side with the mud-slinger instead of the logical politician.
3. Be Intellectually Humble
Critical Thinking Step #4 tells us to be intellectually humble, which means to admit that we do not know everything. We need to be open to others' ideas so that we can see the world from many perspectives decide that our beliefs are correct. Just as scientists have changed their beliefs about the world as time moves on, so should we be open to the idea that we might be wrong. But I think that the Magisterium does the exact opposite in its Infallibility Doctrine, and that's one of the reasons I don't like Catholicism.
This idea is important to remember because we don't want to become too cocky and then find out that we are wrong. This idea is especially important to me as an agnostic because I am almost completely open to religious and scientific ideas. I don't believe most of the things I hear, but I try to take it all in and try to separate fact from fiction. It is very important to me to live by this philosophy so that I put my trust in the right places and don't tell everybody else that they are wrong when they could be right. I try not to tell people that they are wrong in their beliefs, only that there is no evidence for to support them.
MY BIG QUESTION