Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Because the world isn't flat, and that theory does not deserve equal weight with the truth in a reference work.

There are an infinite number of falsehoods, and only one truth. If we let the lies in the truth becomes impossible to find in the pile of lies.



You must believe in a quasi-Platonic world of only one truth.

There are many truths. Cleveland is two hours away from me. Cleveland is 40 hours away from me. Both of these are true, but there is not enough detail in them to ascertain exactly what they mean. The same can be said of any statement outside of formal, logic-based language constraints.

The point your statement keenly misses, however, is that the truth is nowhere near as obvious as you make it seem. Darwin's theories were preposterous to people who were just as certain of "one truth" as you are.


Post-modern relatavism and extreme cynicism are destroying everything that was once good in the world.

Some things are objectively true, and those objective things are exactly what encyclopedias are for. Starting from the presupposition that all statements are equally true is wrong headed in the extreme.

Some people will disagree with even obvious facts like the world not being flat. We don't have to listen to them, and we should not.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: