Transcript NON-SCRIPTURAL MONOTHEISM

RATIONAL
TRUTH SEEKERS
ONLY
www.sanityquestpublishing.com
OBJECTIVE TRUTH
Objective truth
 Subjective truth?
 Objective opinion?
 Subjective opinion?
 Objective reality?
 Subjective reality?

Objective:
mind independent
Subjective:
mind dependent
Objective vs. Subjective
what ?
Truth ?
Facts ?
Information ?
Terms ?
Reality ?
Knowledge ?
Statements ?
?
?
?
? ? ? ?
?
? ?
? ? ?? ?
???
?
? ? ? ?
Operating
System
starting point
Starting point possibilities

Existence
of self
 of the universe
 of God


Assumption

Undeniability

Pragmatic necessity
I know
I know
nothing.
RATIONAL COPOUTS
1.
pretending to know what you don’t know
2.
pretending not to know what you know
3.
deliberately misjudging probability
4.
holding inconsistent premises
EMOTION
Emotion is
1. the reason for reason
2. the biggest opponent of reason
EMOTION
REASON

Get now !

Watch budget .

Liberate !

Restrict .

stupid

smart

child

guardian
Best possible
operating system
Subjective ?
Truth Seeker
Operating System

fewest rational copouts

allows knowledge of the knowable

disallows false knowledge
Comfort Seeker
Operating System

gratifies emotion

includes faith to cover
post-mortem possibilities
Comfort vs. Truth Seekers
Best possible
operating system
Subjective ?
Best possible
operating system
that which gives the
greatest ratio of happiness
over unhappiness for
duration of existence
TRUTH SEEKER
OPERATING SYSTEM
Now I’m selling it.
OPINION !
Truth seeking is
the most sensible thing
a sentient being can do.
Truth seeker assumptions
Operationally necessary
I know.
I think.
I perceive.
I emote (have emotions).
Logic is reliable.
Operationally necessary
assumptions
Hard wired
Programmed
I know.
I think.
I perceive.
I emote.
Logic is reliable.
Logic serves premises.
Primary
sources of premises
Emotion
 Observation

Sources of premises
Emotion
 Observation
 Reason
 Authority

Authority has 2 prongs.
Coercive
 Informative

Observation
vs.
Authority
Operationally necessary
assumption
without sufficient data
Bet.
Operationally
unnecessary
assumption
Maybe later.
Epistemology: the study of
knowledge, and how things are known

objective: rules governing how things are known

subjective: a person's chosen rules
Ontology: the study of being,
and what things are
Observation
vs.
Authority
again
Observation horizon
Don’t mess with
infinity,
until
you
have
to.
Reason
observation
2. authority
3. emotion
1.
Reason
Logic
 Probability judgment

Logic
Everything that is universally true of
the relationships of variables.
Exists epistemologically in laws.
Exists ontologically in extension.
Laws of thought
1.
Law of identity
2.
Law of non-contradiction
3.
Law of excluded middle
3 terms used in logic
major, middle, minor
Major premise:
major
term
Minor premise:
middle
term
Conclusion:
major
term
=
=
middle
term
=
minor
term
minor
term
Probability

Probability
 (arithmetical)

Probability judgment
 (arithmetical or not)
My car will probably start.








age of battery
amount of driving time on battery
number of previous start ups
how long since last charge
amount of last charge
maintenance of battery
age of starter
etc. etc.
There are no rules
governing
non-mathematical
probability judgment.
Probability judgment

More choice = less accurate.


influenced by emotion
Less choice = more accurate.

influenced by observation
& reason
logic
probability judgment
pattern recognition
Truth seeker operating system
1.
Determine operationally necessary
assumptions.
2.
Choose premises unemotionally.
3.
Accumulate observed data.
4.
Learn logic.
5.
Learn critical thinking.
Critical thinking
1.
Disambiguation

Terms

Statements
Ambiguous terms
The prices are on the books.
The books are on the table.
The prices are on the table.
A = B.

All A = B.
Kings are men.

Some A = B.
Greeks are men.

This A = B.
Socrates is a man.

All A generally = B.
Kings are pragmatic.

Some A generally = B.
Greeks are democratic.

This A generally = B.
Socrates is rational.
Nothing is ambiguous.
Does A = B ?


Define A.
Define B.
Question answered.
Does A = B ?
Joe: "A equals B."
Fred: "What do you mean by A?"
Joe: "By A, I mean yada yada."
Fred: "That's not what A means."
Triangles have 3 sides.
What kind and size of triangles?
Irrelevant.
An unambiguous term
stands for one concept.
A concept is a thought
that corresponds
to a thing.
Levels of reality
1. the thing itself
2. a concept of that thing
2a. categories of such things
3. a term labeling the concept
or category
Concepts
 Legitimate
or illegitimate
 Legitimate


real
imaginary
Define terms. Clarify concepts.

Concept clarification
 Identify it.
 Categorize it.

Concept identification
 Is it A or B ?
Vague concepts
gray
Vague concepts
not gray
gray
not gray
Vague concepts
defined
broadly
narrowly
Oxymorons
1.
concepts made of opposite concepts
2.
terms made of mutually exclusive
concepts
3.
terms made of mutually exclusive words
Then mutually exclusivity
becomes sloppified.

Distinctions
 relevant
 irrelevant
concept distinctions









distinct or vague
real or imaginary
real or apparent
absolute or relative
non-contingent or contingent
objective or subjective
abstract or concrete
ontological or epistemological
etc.
1 relevant distinction

Human actions
 voluntary
 involuntary
Involuntary vs. voluntary
actions
A category is
a container
for concepts.
Categorical relationships
1.
separate
2.
intersecting
A
3.
hierarchical
A
A
B
B
B
Identical categories

definitionally identical


always 1 category
coincidentally identical

sometimes 1 category
3 categorical laws
1.
No set is a member of itself.
2.
No set is a member of one of its
subsets
3.
No concept is both inside and
outside of any set.

Laws of math & logic
 Formulated.

Laws of disambiguation,
concept clarification,
& categorization
 Ignored !!!
Vaguely defined
categories
Sufficiently define
a category.
Hierarchical relationships
“subsets”
subsets, parts, subordinates
Types of concepts
More types of concepts
Objective / subjective, Distinct / vague, etc.
Don’t try this at home.
“Category” is a concept.
Concepts exist in categories.
Paradoxes
Knowledge
Hard wired
Programmed
I know.
I think.
I perceive.
I emote.
Logic is reliable.
Knowledge

impossibility of the contrary

Hard wired knowledge

Programmed knowledge ?
Knowledge
1. impossibility of the contrary
a. hard wired knowledge
2. inconceivability of the contrary
a. reliability of logic
Levels

Most important

Less important
 Less important

Less important
Less foundational
Less foundational
Less foundational
Most foundational
Knowledge
1. impossibility of the contrary
a. hard wired knowledge
2. inconceivability of the contrary
a. reliability of logic
3. irrelevance of the contrary
a. existence of external world
Knowledge
1. impossibility of the contrary
2. inconceivability of the contrary
3. irrelevance of the contrary
4. imperceivability of the contrary
Knowledge defined for
building an operating system
1. impossibility of the contrary
2. inconceivability of the contrary
3. irrelevance of the contrary
improbability of the contrary
Any rational declarative statement
is either true or false.
A statement known to be true
is called certain.
A statement known to be false
is called impossible.
Probability error #1
certainty
probability
impossibility
Probability error #2
5 levels of probability
1.
100%: certain
2.
less than 100% & more than 50%: probable
3.
50%: equal chance
4.
less than 50% & more than 0%: improbable
5.
0%: impossible
Sound bet
Probability
 objective
 Risk to reward ratio
 subjective

5 levels of probability
1.
100%: certain
2.
less than 100% & more than 50%: probable
3.
50%: equal chance
4.
less than 50% & more than 0%: improbable
5.
0%: impossible
Concepts

Universal
abstracts
 space/time


Not universal

physical things
Value of correctness
Correctness
beneficial
Created concepts

legitimate

illegitimate (pseudo-concepts)

emotion generated
Attitude
Value of pseudo-concepts

Esthetics
 Art
 Poetry
 Entertainment
 Sounding cool
love
Ayn’s love unscrambled
concepts
categories
love
things caused
by love
exception
making
exceptions
Ayn’s love unscrambled
things
caused
exceptions
by
love
Important distinction

what something is

what causes it

what it causes
Inconsistent premises
Internally inconsistent
with itself


Externally inconsistent
with another premise
Internally inconsistent premises

Everything is relative.

All knowledge is subjective.

There are no universally true statements.


Intolerance is evil.
Intolerant speech should be suppressed.
Self contradictory statements ?





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
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This statement is false.
I am lying.
I am a liar.
I am ashamed of my pride.
liberty and justice for all
Expect the unexpected.
agree to disagree
Less is more.
Meaning

literal

intended
External contradiction

A = B.

A doesn’t = B.
Externally inconsistent premises

Materialism is true. Abstracts exist.

Objective values exist, but an objective
evaluator doesn’t.

You can’t legislate morality.
Murder should be illegal.

God is omnipotent. God cannot lie.
External contradiction

A = B.

B = C.

A doesn’t = C.
EMOTION
Opposites
true opposite
vs. pseudo-opposite
or
opposite of negativity
vs. opposite of absence
Opposition
the relationship of two concepts
on a common axis and equidistant
from a midpoint on that axis.
A
-A
^
Absolute opposites
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4
^
Relative opposites
^
0
1
2
hot-cold
3
4
5
6
fast-slow
7
Opposition
without a midpoint ?
true
false
^
middle
More ?
Don’t worry. You’ll find it.
Burden of proof
Not a law.
Just a social obligation.
If your point is provable,
prove it.
Joe: All S are P.
Fred: Some S are not P.
B.o.p. is on Fred .
Joe: Some S are P.
Fred: No S are P.
B.o.p. is on Joe .
Joe: If A, then B.
Fred: Not necessarily.
B.o.p. is on Fred .
Burden of proof
If your point is more provable,
don’t assert an equal burden
on him whose point is
less provable.
Joe: X exists in this box .
Fred: No it doesn’t.
B.o.p. is inapplicable .
Joe: X exists in this building .
Fred: No it doesn’t.
B.o.p. is shifting to Joe .
Joe: X exists within
observable space/time .
Fred: No it doesn’t.
B.o.p. is unclear .
Joe: X exists .
Fred: No it doesn’t .
B.o.p. is inapplicable .
RATIONAL
TRUTH SEEKERS
ONLY
www.sanityquestpublishing.com
statement vs. reality
objective
reality
subjective
reality
objective
statement
Oranges are I like the taste
round.
of oranges.
subjective
statement
Oranges
Oranges taste
appear round.
good.
statement vs. fact
An objective fact
exists apart from a
mind.
A subjective fact
exists inside
a mind.
An objective
A subjective
statement is about statement is about
an objective fact. a subjective fact.
Logic serves premises.
Major premise
Minor premise
True premise
True premise
Conclusion
True conclusion
True premise
False premise
False premise
True premise
False conclusion
False conclusion