Mens Sana Foundation

here's a tendency among some people to make assertions that they imply — or even claim — are facts. The overwhelming majority of them are not.

They do this because they believe that facts are not subject to disagreement. Therefore, by getting you to accept uncritically what they say as fact, they hope that you’ll concur without further thought.

It's just another way people have of controlling your thinking.

There are 5 kinds of assertions, "assertion" in this context meaning a string of words claiming to express the truth of something. They are fact, agreement, inference, judgment, and opinion.

A fact expresses the truth of something that can be confirmed either by testing or by experiment replicatable by others. For example: If you fall out of an airplane over an open field, you’ll hit the ground. That’s a fact.

An agreement purports to express the truth of something simply because people are of one mind on the subject. To illustrate: A touchdown in football is worth 6 points. Now that’s not a fact; it’s an agreement.

An inference purports to express the truth of something on the basis of careful observation followed by careful reasoning. For example: The universe began with a Big Bang. That’s not a fact, either; it’s an inference.

A judgment purports to express the truth of something based upon observation and experience. To illustrate: "Look at those clouds. It’s going to rain soon." That’s not a fact; it’s a judgment.

And an opinion purports to express the truth of something based upon nothing more than personal likes or dislikes. As an example: "Jim Brown was the greatest running back ever." That’s not a fact; it’s an opinion.

So the next time someone starts an assertion with the words "It’s a fact that . . . ." or "The fact of the matter is . . . .," listen very carefully to what follows. The chances are that it will be anything but a fact.

Oh, by the way, what I just said was not a fact. It was a cross between an inference and a judgment.

Think about it.