Forum Post: Challenge Assumptions

(Lifted from my reply to a reply in another thread.)

There are several erroneous assumptions in many of the posts on this forum. Allow me to address four of the most prevalent.

1) No one political party is more to blame for where we are now than another. If you believe that it is, then you really need to become more engaged in the debate and open your mind. There are 235 years of American political history and each party has had equal shares of poor judgement and thoughtful insight.

2) Corporations are not the savior of the world nor is government evil incarnate. The reverse is also true. Government created the laws which allow corporations to exist. Corporations enjoy the protection of the government. The government receives taxes from corporations. Corporations receive lucrative contracts from the government. They need each other and to suggest that 'government is the problem' is tantamount to saying corporations shouldn't exist.

3) Government workers are no less or more motivated than any other employees in any other sector of the economy. Both businesses and government have their share of freeloaders and inspiring leaders. Find those inspiring leaders in both kinds of organizations and hold them up as an example for others instead of finding only the fault in one.

4) Cited sources of information do not make the assertions they support indisputable. Sometimes we need to think 'intuitively'. Many people on these boards suggest that assertions without facts are baseless. Our intellect complements our intuition. An assertion without facts is no less true or false than one with facts. Disputes about the sources of facts and labeling the source of facts as being liberal, conservative, right wing or left wing only serve to further confuse. Think intuitively about a statement or assertion and check your intuition against the facts provided instead of accepting the facts as indisputable just because they support your position.