Dear Friends,
It seems to me, there’s a devilish nature to the excuse du’jour of the progressives, that they can’t answer a basic question because they aren’t experts. Like, they can’t discern a boy from a girl, because they aren’t doctors. That answer sidesteps the question, distracts and gives the false impression, experts are always right. Historic evidence of their being wrong most of the time notwithstanding. When asked their intentions, good people tell them, while evil people change their story, fog the air and attack. Claiming ignorance because one isn’t an expert does all three. It changes the story because they claimed to be experts before claiming not to be, fogs the air by changing the subject from the question, to whether it takes an expert to answer it, and attacks by putting the question on the defensive.
One way to not answer an inconvenient question is to side step it. Have you noticed how often politicians don’t want to answer straight forward questions, especially progressives? Instead they use every conceivable means to distract, by changing the subject, attacking the question and answering a query they weren’t asked, doesn’t speak well of their intentions. If someone has been caught lying, over and over, plus they can’t give you a straight answer to any question, they’re probably hoodwinking you. Well, that’s not actually true, they’re definitely hoodwinking you. If someone claims they’re so smart they should be a supreme court justice, for example, but can’t discern that which a toddler can, you have to question their discernment, judgement or their intentions.
With today’s inversion of morality, where truth is villainy but hypocrisy is heroic, responsibility for one’s actions lays in the view of others. Today’s elite’s claim they’re such whizzbangs, they can change the weather, but cleaning up corruption, fixing government spending or showing up to work sober, are outside their capabilities. The captured media is agog with how our experts have done such a wonderful job. Giving the experts credit where credit isn’t due. Politicians claim to be so smart, they can regulate every action of the individual, by the bureaucracy. For our own good. If things go wrong they can blame the bureaucrats. Even as the bureaucrats blame the politicians but consider themselves the real power behind the throne. No one takes responsibility but everyone in government vies for credit.
No notion could be more pernicious or counter productive than the false belief in the experts. History doesn’t pull punches when it comes to the credibility of experts. From bleeding to draw out our bad humors, to mercury to cure syphilis, experts have been consistently wrong. Today’s experts brought us the Covid virus, made in a lab by experts for our enjoyment, mandated the vaccine that neither stopped the spread nor was safe, and now they’re engaged in undermining elections, to save democracy. Experts have arrogance in common. They’re arrogant, and why shouldn’t they be? They are the smartest people in the room. Their the best educated with university degrees. Plus, they have a more nuanced morality, than the common herd. So why shouldn’t they have unlimited power? Or so the logic goes.
All three fallacies, sidestepping a question, avoiding responsibility for one’s actions and deferring to experts, lead to evil. Even if done by saints toward a Utopian goal these tools lead to bad outcomes. Because no one is omnipotent, except God, but usurping the role of God is the point, isn’t it? It’s one of the reasons the experts do these things. Villains don’t tell their victims, they’re going to be victims, beforehand, that makes victimizing us harder. So, villains sidestep questions, attack the questioner and distract. Since we know this in our hearts, and now know it in our heads, when you see an elite distract, differ to experts or attack the question, you know they have no good intentions. They’re villains who’re planning to victimize you, so take heed, and act accordingly.
Sincerely,
John Pepin
