facts are important but over-rated

I'm not a fan of "alternative facts", but "facts" are over-rated in two key ways: 

1.) They're not as objective as many folks imagine, at least as they make their way into the public arena. (McGowan focuses on #1 in this useful essay, with good examples.)

2.) They're not nearly as powerful as many folks imagine. Instead, worldview and theories are much more important. Apply more facts to bad theory or a distorted worldview and you get equally-crappy inferences with more dogmatism or even, fundamentalism. Ouch.

#Gradgrind

#ChestertonsMadman

#ModernismTwisted