Babies and Bathwater

There’s an expression that goes something like “Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater!” – if you aren’t familiar with it, follow this link to Wikipedia: das Kind mit dem Bade ausschütten…

The notion that someone would throw out the baby with the bathwater betrays a lack of trust or respect of the judgment of others – the notion that someone, rather than being able to reason for themselves and pick out the good and useful from the bad and useless, would spot one negative thing about the box of thought that they’re handed, and throw away the box and all its contents without thinking.
You know – the kind of genius level thinking that happens with no-tolerance rules (designed to put school administration at the same level of difficulty as pushing the hamburger button on a fast food register.)  If there’s a rule that says you’ll be suspended for having a knife on campus, you might be wrestled to the ground if you pick up the pointy plastic-ware in the cafeteria.
This is the world we live in now, where thinking is reduced to terms so simple that it isn’t thinking at all. Reason has become a lost art form, common sense an underrated (and derided) sense. Our king (and those who would be) assume that whatever is commonly held can’t be right, especially because “those people aren’t the proper kind of people.”
There’s a style of argument that seems to rely on this type of thinking.
Argument:  “I don’t agree, since reason A, reason B, and reason C.”
Rebuttal:  “You are a _____ ist!” (You can fill in the blank.)
This rebuttal is used to make one point: the person who disagrees with me is a pariah and therefore has NO valid opinions or facts, because we all know how people like them are. The people listening are expected to disregard the argument by throwing out the baby with the bathwater.
I believe even a sinner can know what’s right – EVEN IF they don’t live their life as a shining example to others. If Charles Manson tells you that stealing is a sin, does the fact that he’s a murdering sociopath mean he’s wrong?
Even liars sometimes tell the truth, no matter how uncommon that occurrence is. So think about what you hear and reason it out for yourself. Facts are facts, no matter where and who they come from.
Just saying….

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William Mangieri’s writing (including his latest ePublication “Mutiny on the Star-Bound”) can be found in many places, such as:

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