Why do people think Hillary clinton Was he running a pedophile ring from a pizzeria, or that airplane contrails are mind-altering drugs sprayed by a secret government program?
While rationality should be the lodestar of everything we think and do (if you disagree with this statement, are your objections rational?), We live in an age rich in fake news, quack remedies, conspiracy theories and “post-truth” rhetoric. Why did this happen?
The virtues of reason
Why do we turn our backs on the instruments that have allowed us to discover laws of nature, transform the planet, prolong and enrich life and, in particular, articulate the rules of the same rationality that we so often violate?
Rationality: What it is, why it is scarce and how to promote it (Contexts)
Reason enables us to evaluate doubtful claims, understand puzzling paradoxes, and better understand the vicissitudes and tragedies of life. It is time to put it back in a preeminent place, ignoring those who cite presumably rational reasons for claiming that reason is overrated, thus using the powerful tool they claim to disdain.
For this, the experimental psychologist, cognitive scientist, linguist Steven Pinker, behind his previous work, In defense of the Enlightenment, explains us in Rationality: What it is, why it is scarce and how to promote it to what extent the human being is more rational than we suppose, as well as describing various ways of invoking rationality to, finally, remind us how important this is.
Rationality also explores its opposite: how the rational pursuit of self-interest, sectarian solidarity, and the edifying mythology of individuals can lead to paralyzing irrationality in a society. Collective rationality depends on rules explicitly designed to promote objectivity and truth. Rationality is important. It allows us to make better decisions in our lives and in the public sphere, and it is the main engine of social justice and moral progress. Brimming with insight and humor, Rationality will enlighten, inspire, and empower us.
Again, although we are not before the brilliant author of The clean slate, Rationality is another great work of dissemination of Pinker. An author who always offers more than the average. Which is already a lot.