Unsubstantiated: Difference between revisions

From The Jolly Contrarian
Jump to navigation Jump to search
No edit summary
Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit
No edit summary
Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit
Line 3: Line 3:
A bullshit artist’s tell. Something inconvenient or embarrassing that happened, but for which there is currently no proof or credible supporting or evidence.  
A bullshit artist’s tell. Something inconvenient or embarrassing that happened, but for which there is currently no proof or credible supporting or evidence.  


To be contrasted something that did ''not'' happen, which may comfortably described as “false”.<ref>We owe this observation to, among others, David Allen Green. </ref> Substantiation is thus a second-order property of a fact: something that, in the eyes of the outside world, falls, in [[Rumsfeld’s taxonomy]], between a “[[known known]]” and an “[[unknown known]]” — call it a “[[suspected known][” —but to the person making the statement, is squarely in the latter category.
To be contrasted something that did ''not'' happen, which may comfortably described as “false”.<ref>We owe this observation to, among others, David Allen Green. </ref>  
 
Thus, it is easy enough to disarm, by asking, “but is it untrue?”
 
“Substantiation” is thus a second-order property of a fact: something that, in the eyes of the outside world, falls, in [[Rumsfeld’s taxonomy]], between a “[[known known]]” and an “[[unknown known]]” — call it a “[[suspected known]]” —but to the person making the statement, is squarely in the latter category.


{{Sa}}
{{Sa}}
*[[Truth]]
*[[Truth]]
*[[Rumsfeld’s taxonomy]]
*[[Rumsfeld’s taxonomy]]

Revision as of 10:26, 5 December 2021

The Jolly Contrarian’s Glossary
The snippy guide to financial services lingo.™
Index — Click the ᐅ to expand:
Tell me more
Sign up for our newsletter — or just get in touch: for ½ a weekly 🍺 you get to consult JC. Ask about it here.

Unsubstantiated
/ʌnsəbˈstanʃɪeɪtɪd/ (adj.)

A bullshit artist’s tell. Something inconvenient or embarrassing that happened, but for which there is currently no proof or credible supporting or evidence.

To be contrasted something that did not happen, which may comfortably described as “false”.[1]

Thus, it is easy enough to disarm, by asking, “but is it untrue?”

“Substantiation” is thus a second-order property of a fact: something that, in the eyes of the outside world, falls, in Rumsfeld’s taxonomy, between a “known known” and an “unknown known” — call it a “suspected known” —but to the person making the statement, is squarely in the latter category.

See also

  1. We owe this observation to, among others, David Allen Green.