Template:Critical theory, modernism and the death of objective truth: Difference between revisions

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{{Drop|A|t this point}} two self-refuting mythological creatures are cast into the ring: “atheists in foxholes”, and “postmodernists on aeroplanes”. Neither, according to the other, exists.
{{Drop|A|t this point}} two self-refuting mythological creatures are cast into the ring: “atheists in foxholes”, and “postmodernists on aeroplanes”. Neither, according to the other, exists.


{{Quote|“Show me,” [[Richard Dawkins]] huffs, “a [[cultural relativist]] at thirty thousand feet and I’ll show you a hypocrite”. }}
{{Quote|“Show me,” [[Richard Dawkins]] huffs, “a [[cultural relativist]] at thirty thousand feet and I’ll show you a hypocrite”.}}


By the fact that he takes his argument no further, we expect Dawkins believes he has won it, [[quod erat demonstrandum]]. There are objective truths, everyone knows it, and this [[postmodernist]] blather to the contrary is all a ''posture''. Because — ''aeroplanes''.
By the fact that he takes his argument no further, we expect Dawkins believes he has won it, [[quod erat demonstrandum]]. There are objective truths, everyone knows it, and this [[postmodernist]] blather to the contrary is all a ''posture''. Because — ''aeroplanes''.


But Dawkins misreads ''consensus'' for ''truth'', and ''observation'' for ''explanation''.  
But Dawkins misreads ''consensus'' for ''truth'', and ''observation'' for ''explanation''. “I have seen some planes fly” does not go very far towards explaining ''why''. And iat is not clear to which “transcendent truth” he appeals. It does not seem to be “the veracity of modern aerodynamics” — the finer points of which were not worked out when {{Plainlink|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Pearse|Richard Pearse}} took his first flight and are in any case quite lost on birds — so that kind of truth is not needed to take a flight. It may be nothing more than the simple statement that “planes seem to go up and come down reliably enough that I am prepared to get in one”.  
 
Nor is it clear to which “transcendent truth” he appeals. It does not seem to be “the veracity of modern aerodynamics” — the finer points of which were not worked out when {{Plainlink|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Pearse|Richard Pearse}} took his first flight and are in any case quite lost on birds — so that kind of truth is not needed to take a flight. It may be nothing more than the simple statement that “planes seem to go up and come down reliably enough that I am prepared to get in one”.  


One can have any number of reasons for believing that planes fly: “scientists are clever and they figured it out”, “it’s magic!”, “St. Christopher watches over all travellers” or just, “a cursory glance at the statistics tells me the probability of planes falling randomly out of the sky has declined markedly since the nineteen-sixties, and there is now less than a one-in-a-million chance I’ll die on a passenger flight. I care not why.”
One can have any number of reasons for believing that planes fly: “scientists are clever and they figured it out”, “it’s magic!”, “St. Christopher watches over all travellers” or just, “a cursory glance at the statistics tells me the probability of planes falling randomly out of the sky has declined markedly since the nineteen-sixties, and there is now less than a one-in-a-million chance I’ll die on a passenger flight. I care not why.”
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