IT IS WHAT IT IS (DARE2DOUBT PART 4)

Growing up, what adult does not remember their parent or guardian or babysitter yelling out the phrase, "Because I said so!"

Another thing we must do when trying to think more clearly is to avoid "circular reasoning."

I will give you some examples:

"because it is the law of the land!"

"Because the Bible ( or other holy books) says so!"

"Because that's the way it always has been!"

When we start with an assumption without justification and conclude through arguments that that assumption is "true," we are guilty of this fallacy.

It is because it is.

This method avoids asking what, who, or why.

This avoidance also is used for daily, routine circumstances.

"Well, sorry you're going through that, but it is what it is!"

Now, obviously, within an ordered society, within a home, there are reasons why we have rules and laws, and there are processes in place to object. Hopefully, they work! I am not promoting anarchy here.

I am reminded of the line from the movie The Ten Commandments, quoting the ancient scriptures, "I am that I am!"

Ok, before you, your priest, and your parents go and stone me right now, I am simply saying that when being critical of our thinking, we must not assume or think and then act without justification.

Perhaps your god gets away with it, but we must not!

Can we not have a reason other than saying, "It is what it is?"

In reality, in defense of busy people, there often isn't the time for it, at least we claim. And sometimes, it is true. Life has a way of burdening us with responsibilities and obligations of various sorts that make us tired. And then we are not able or willing to think critically. That's why (when on a diet) we rush and grab a hamburger. That's why the religious justify when or when not to violate their heartfelt rules, often without any reason. People are hypocrites because they don't have or make the time to think.

But I would argue that we must make time at some point to think about things. We must know what we believe and why.

We must start to justify our thinking and our inevitable actions or inactions that result.

Sometimes, there will be no answers. That's ok. Sometimes there will be no reason. That's ok.

The reason doubts are ok, the unanswerable is ok, is because, as I have maintained, doubts can lead to eventual irrifutable knowledge. If we are fully confident 100% that something is infallibly correct, without question, then we will never search for any truth that might contradict it. Doubts leave a gap, in which we do not have to ascribe it to anything other than it being unanswerable, at least at the time. We do not have to label our doubts. We do not have to call them anything other than "unknown...for now."

We don't have to say that the wizard (our preconceived or unchangable thinking) is wonderful "because because because because because."

We can look to reasons why. By the way, for Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz it was "because of all the wonderful things he does."

Let's have reasons for thinking why we do instead of "because because because because because."

And you are welcome for my having stuck the silly song in your head.

Why did I do it?...Just because.