Changing your Mind

3/24/10

It’s ok to change your mind.  In fact, admitting you were wrong is a sign of intellectual maturity.  It is something we Humanists pride ourselves on. We want our opinions to be educated opinions. What I don’t understand is why people, when faced with overwhelming evidence that they were wrong stick to their unfounded opinions.  It doesn’t make any sense to me. What is even harder for me to understand is why people, when they find out they have been lied to don’t turn around and get mad at the people who lied to them.  Especially when you find out a politician or political party you trusted lied to you.

For example:  The Republicans put out a list in November 2009 that listed 111 “new” federal programs the health care reform supposedly created.  It didn’t.  It created one.  So what are the items on their list? 

Items - #97 – 111 are updates to the existing Indian Health Services program.  #1 – 12 is actually just setting up the exchange.  So – right there they list 27 programs that are actually just 2.  And of those only 1 is new.  I could go through the entire thing, but you get the idea.  There aren’t 111 new programs being created.  Just one. 

And aside from the creation of the exchange – which is legitimate grounds for debate, 90% of their list is actually just updates to existing law. Like changing the Medicare subsidy from re-imbursements for wheelchairs to re-imbursements for all mobility devices.  Not something anyone would disagree with. 

So, why would the Republicans create a list claiming to be new programs when 90% of the list is actually just updates to old programs and even then overstate the number of programs being created by a factor of 10?  We can only come to two conclusions.  Whoever came up with that list is either an idiot who just went through looking for names of things without checking to see what they actual were, or, they intentionally lied about the contents of that list.  Regardless, when Boehner took the floor on Sunday and yelled about how no one had read the bill, he was apparently talking about himself.

Look – ethics are important.  Personal ethics are super important.  You need to make sure you are basing your opinions on facts.  If you find out you were mistaken, the ethical and responsible thing to do is to change or revise your opinion.  And if you find out that someone is an idiot and/or lied to you, don’t trust them anymore!  Seriously.  Don’t.