The Fact of the Matter

  I've noticed a lot of people lately who are ranting about the "truth". And some who are upset because some of us don't "believe" in the "truth". And the truth they speak of is of a wide range from GMO corn to politics.

  I submit the following based on obsevation. We tend to confuse truth with fact. "What's the dif?" you ask. Glad you asked.

  "Truth" is always based on a belief. "Belief" is accepting as fact, something for which there is no empirical evidence. Here's an example:

 Let's say you find yourself in court. You are charged with armed robbery and murdering the clerk in a small strip mall store. Fact: You did not do it. You do however match the description given by Mrs. Armstrong, the only living witness, who saw the guilty party leave the store and throw the weapon down the storm sewer.

 After taking an oath to tell the truth, and being advised of the penalty for purgery, Mrs. Armstrong takes the witness stand and tells the story of how, as she waited in the car for Mr. Armstrong to get his haircut, she saw  a person fitting your desciption leave the store in a hurry, throw what appeared to be a small caliber revolver into the storm drain, and disappear down an alley. When asked by the prosicuter if that person is in the courtroom, she points her finger at you and says you're the one she saw.

  Suddenly, a police officer enters the courtroom and hurries to your attorney. He whispers to your attorney, waving a large manilla envelope.
  "Your Honor! We have new evidence!" The judge motions to the officer to approace the bench. Your attorney informs you that they finally recovered the weapon and got fingerprints which lead to the arrest of Mortimer Badapple, a guy with a criminal past. Upon opening the envelope, the judge finds an 8X10 photo of Mortimer Badapple. He could be your twin! Charges are dropped and you're released.

Question: Did Mrs. Armstrong tell the truth?
Answer: Yes.
  While is was not you that she saw, she "believed" it was you . Her testamony was true, based on that belief. She did not lie.

  With Mrs. Armstrong's testamony in mind, let's be careful in our conversation to seperate truth from fact.  The two words are not synonyms.

That's a fact.

Peace,
       George.