Productive discussions about opinions need to be steeped in facts. Facts are determined in a disciplined process that requires us to set aside ideology and to make an honest effort in seeking the truth.
The first step is to aggressively seek evidence that falsifies your most cherished beliefs. Then, change your mind when the facts contradict your worldview. A strong emotional commitment to a candidate or ideology makes objectivity impossible, so suspend those emotions if you are earnestly seeking the truth.
Trust the consensus view of experts who devote their lives to politically neutral research and scholarship, and who advance knowledge, science and technology through rigorous studies that employ scientific methods. Publications such as Scientific American, The Economist, Physics Today and Skeptical Inquirer are excellent sources of reliable information and honest debate on important topics. Distrust outlier studies even when their conclusions support your views and avoid fringe “experts” on social media.
Trust testimony under oath over tweets, social media posts and TV interviews. For example, Republican White House lawyers and staff, Trump-appointed officials, and other insiders have testified under oath about Trump’s extensive unethical and criminal behavior. They have nothing to gain personally from their testimony, and to the contrary, are threatened with physical violence by Trump’s MAGA minions.
Trust multifaceted evidence that paints a consistent picture. Trump’s election fraud “evidence” consists of disjoint accusations that have been individually debunked and/or dismissed by the courts.
According to these standards, Fox News is unreliable. Damning internal emails obtained during discovery by Dominion Voting Systems and the $787 million libel suit settled by Fox exposes Fox’s dishonesty. “Mainstream media” has biases but is mostly trustworthy, and routinely corrects errors. Fox, NewsMax, OAN and RTV have a record of intentionally deceiving viewers and not correcting errors. In Fox’s defense, they have backtracked on repeating stolen election lies on air since the Dominion settlement but continue to peddle other lies.
Don’t trust ideological organizations such as anti-vax groups and True the Vote, the source of misinformation in the “documentary” 2000 Mules. Under court order, they were unable to provide evidence of election fraud. Independent investigations by the department of justice and security analysts – even those hired by Trump -- found the claims in 2000 Mules bogus. Outstanding libel cases brought by those falsely depicted in the film provide additional granular evidence.
Don’t trust known liars. Trump’s lies are repeatedly exposed and are obviously intended to stoke his ego and serve to avoid criminal prosecution. Lies that are relentlessly repeated don’t make them true. Lies parroted by his sycophants, spineless politicians, and hapless supporters -- even after amplification by social media -- are still lies.
Form opinions AFTER seeing the evidence. House Republicans are fishing for “evidence” to impeach Biden. Their “evidence” was discredited by the Trump-appointed prosecutor, which exposed a link between the Republicans’ star “informant” and the Kremlin. In contrast, voice recordings, videos, signed paper documents, emails, texts and under-oath eyewitness testimony by former Trump loyalists have convinced several grand juries, in both red and blue districts, of massive criminal conspiracy with Trump as its mob boss. Readers should study the taped testimony and recordings of live Jan6 hearings and court documents filed by Jack Smith, which paint an indisputable picture of Trump’s attempt to steal the election. The totality of the evidence supports Biden’s innocence and exposes Trump’s criminal/anti-democratic behavior. The republicans are fabricating a narrative of FALSE equivalence between Biden and Trump.
An existential threat to our democracy is being fueled by a false belief in lies and conspiracy theories at a time when solutions to complex problems need to be guided by reality. The antidote is an informed electorate. It is thus the responsibility of every US citizen to uncover the truth using trusted sources and sound methodology. Let’s inform debate with facts – not talking points, elect thoughtful and intelligent leaders – not those with debunked ideologies, and demand that our elected leaders implement effective policies based on the evidence. Only then can we unleash the power of a unified America by bursting the artificial bubbles that divide us so that we can together focus our energies on solving real problems.
