Denial or reality?

I do not have a very profound point to make today. The problem with our reality is the problem of how often we are wrong. Any policeman can tell you, and has been able to tell you for decades, that eyewitness statements are notoriously unreliable. Between the stress of the moment, and the assumptions that our eyes and brains make about what we are seeing, eyewitness reliability is limited. In the same way, the reason that scientific studies are supposed to be confirmed by repetition by scientists not affiliated with the original study is because of the tendency to see what you want to see confirmed in the study. It should be noted that part of what powered a recent scandal in science is the failure to appropriate confirm any of various studies that we now take somewhat for granted. There were two reasons powering that scandal. One is the particularly scholastic tradition that to not publish studies is to perish. In other words, departments at universities and colleges want professors that are regularly publishing to prove that they have professors who are up with the latest. This has led to multiple studies being published without ever being fully peer-reviewed in an appropriate fashion nor confirmed by appropriate repetition.

Some social studies people have even claimed that up to 50% of what we believe is wrong. The problem is that we do not know which 50%. Of course, having said that, this may not be in any way true, since that 50% is, of course, based on studies that may have a significant amount of unrecognized bias built into them. LOL. Actually, while I am not prepared to believe the 50% figure, there have been enough reliable studies on (see the first paragraph) for me to recognize that inevitably some of what I believe is mistaken. Theologians recognized that many years ago. When Greek theologians speak of theologoumena, they are speaking of theological statements that are opinion, but not doctrine. It is a recognition that there are many things that we do not know. That is, our opinions are uncertain and lack a certain certainty.

But, that is not what I found myself thinking about today. I looked at the cartoon above and found myself laughing at how many times I do truly choose my own reality. I do get days that I really want to be in denial. I wish I could create my own reality. I really do want to do away with all that is frustrating in my life by simply deciding that it does not exist. In my personal life I want to deny those things that make me seem like anything other than a couth, educated, individual. Like anyone else, I want to be loved, respected, and held up as an ideal. I most definitely, and most clearly, am selective about the reality I accept. And, so, today I found myself laughing at myself. Yes, my personal reality is not anything like what others would say is my reality. And, that is a reason for real humor.