Rationality is a celebrity, adored and respected by many. Known for his wise counsel, sound arguments and fair judgment.
But not everyone knows the dark family secret of Rationality, which many dare not think about, let alone mention.
Since I know the secret, I find it necessary to reveal it to my readers, so that they are no longer fooled by this ongoing deception.
Rationality has a twin brother. An evil twin brother.
What’s more, the evil one often pretends to be his good-natured brother, and takes advantage of his brother’s prestige for his own wicked plans.
The evil twin is known as Rationalization.
The twins are identical. They look the same and sound the same.
They are both logical. They are both consistent in their arguments.
But while Rationality upholds truth, Rationalization finds consistency in falsehood.
Rationality ensures that every statement is factual, whereas Rationalization often relies on assumptions.
Rationality respects evidence, but Rationalization values opinions.
Rationality uses reality as his guide, but Rationalization selects from reality that which serves his purposes.
Rationality judges ideas according to Reality, whereas Rationalization judges Reality according to his beliefs.
The twins sound the same, but their arguments are worlds apart.
Rationality equips Man with the right understanding of Reality to ensure his happiness, but Rationalization makes Man’s ignorance sound reasonable. What made this possible is the trust Rationality has built for himself, and the many accomplishments he helped Man achieve.
When Rationalization spoke, people thought it was Rationality, the brother they were fond of. Not knowing that Rationality had an evil twin that was sabotaging the good he worked tirelessly to establish.
And now, when Rationalization is to be condemned for the false arguments he has presented, his brother is taking the blame and losing his credibility and hard-earned reputation.
Which is why it’s important to know that the evil twin exists, and that we must not judge Rationality for the crimes Rationalization has committed in his name.
What conforms to reality is the work of Rationality. What doesn’t is the work of Rationalization.
What’s based on facts – and only facts – and never uses fallacious reasoning is the argument of Rationality. What mixes fact and fiction and fallacy is the concoction of Rationalization.
Whenever you use any logical argument, ask yourself:
Whose work is it: Rationality or Rationalization?