In this context the word 'critical' means to critique; to look at something from as many aspects as possible

This way of observing and making sense of the universe which surrounds us is a fundamental tenet of scientific study, higher education, and any decision-making process. Or at least it once was and I am praying, in light of how our societies are rapidly devolving that we as individuals have not lost the ability to critique information for ourselves, a skill that is absolutely necessary in order to improve our lot (LINK),

At this very moment we are surrounded by a multitude of creations, not just of the natural world but of and by our own hand. I believe it behooves us to learn what we can about as many of these creations as possible, not just because life is short and you don't want to miss much, but to see the fascinating interconnections which exist through them all

Our current technological age permits the interested among the population an almost unlimited access to information on millions of things, discoveries and philosophies. Sadly, this age also supplies us, from every channel, with limited information on carefully selected things designed for the disinterested among the population

Indeed, you and I are awash in so much information that it becomes difficult to remember all that has been heard and read and viewed, never mind finding the time to critique any of it. Yet it is not because we lack sufficient background knowledge to evaluate the information which confronts us

Think about all that you know, either by rote or instinct or common sense. There is a lot there. So much is buried in your memory that it becomes a bit of a chore to recall and use it all for reference when critiquing a subject, action or thing. Much easier to allocate authority to someone else and have them tell you what you need to know, but that course can and often does lead to a disconnect from reality

What happens when what you are told doesn't go along with what you innately know and/or have witnessed? What happens when common sense seems to fly in the face of what you are being told about an important subject? What do you do?

Many people experience what is referred to by behavioral science as 'cognitive dissonance' :

“The theory of cognitive dissonance is elegantly simple: it states that inconsistency between two cognitions creates an (emotionally adverse) state akin to hunger or thirst that gives rise to a motivation to reduce the inconsistency” (LINK),

There are many reasons why people experience this seeming disconnect. It would appear that a majority of people find it much less 'mentally' and 'emotionally' taxing to move on from or ignore the uncomfortable subject rather than dwell on it and its possible implications

It is mentally taxing because of the (slight) effort it will take and it is emotionally taxing because of what a true critiquing would reveal, with all of the turmoil to your world that knowledge might bring

At the same time, nobody likes to admit they might hold a wrong assumption or idea and it is much easier to hold onto knowledge supporting that idea than adding new knowledge which might challenge it

Neither do most people want to be different and it becomes much safer to hold onto what you, and millions of others have been told by an authority figure, rather than weight the merits of what you've seen or read or heard on your own scales

A glaring example of mass 'cognitive dissonance' is evident in the aftermath of 9/11, when two (2) commercial jet airliners caused three (3) office towers to free-fall into their own footprints. Two of the office towers each contained more than 2.6 million tons of steel and concrete and the third tower contained over half a million tons of steel and concrete.

The thought that a commercial jet aircraft containing 250 tons of aluminum, plastic and light metal alloy (including 10 tons of naphtha fuel) could raise to the ground 2,600,000 tons of steel and concrete is impossible to justify. To make matters even more unbelievable, aircraft impacting the building was, by law taken into account during the design and construction in the 1960's and 1970's of those buildings (LINK),

No matter what excuses the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) came up with in their 10,000 page report, the fact remains that a total 500 tons of aluminum and 20 tons of naphtha (the combined weight of two aircraft) cannot disintegrate 5,700,000 tons of steel and concrete in the way we are told (LINK), (LINK),

A more recent example of this phenomenon of widespread disconnect from reality is the current, almost inexplicable mass acceptance of life and death medical advice from people who are not doctors and from doctors, politicians, investment bankers, business owners and experts who receive financial benefit from having you believe what they say, regardless of its impact on your health and future (LINK), (LINK),

I find this mass acceptance on the part of the public hard to explain because historically people don't have faith in things like a government agency investigating itself because they know what maleficence the government is capable of. Why then is that same critical thinking not extended to everything that the public are being told by people who obviously should not be speaking on the subject?

If society is to tread a path beneficial to all then we must regain our individual intellectual authority rather than so willingly handing it off to others

The first steps down that path are the most difficult because it means admitting that we don't know enough and admitting that we must entertain new information even if it is contrary to some, or all of our current concepts. This is not to say that everything we read, hear and see is true yet without acknowledging that every piece of information on a subject is worth considering, we cannot begin a full and proper critique of any subject

Sadly we must accept that asking tough questions in today's political climate can set one apart from the herd, even to the point of being labelled and banished, but we must believe that the fully developed truth is worth it. If we do not have faith in our own ability to discern right from wrong then we will forever be deceived by the most preposterous of claims; the most outlandish of which is the often repeated lie that those who seek power and control are doing it for your/our benefit (LINK), (LINK),

We are human and we are on this Earth to learn and to better ourselves and to better the lives of others. Robert A. Heinlein (aeronautical engineer, navy officer, writer) once said that;

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”

Turn off your television, cancel your subscriptions to main-stream print media and start studying the creations around you before they vanish thought our own ignorance and conceit (LINK),

Thank You,

Ted Willis

Further Reading:

Japan uses critical thinking to protect its population (LINK), (LINK),

India Could Sentence WHO Chief Scientist to Death for Misleading Over Ivermectin and Killing Indians (LINK),

Doctors are calling this phenomena in the repeatedly vaccinated “immune erosion” or “acquired immune deficiency”, accounting for elevated incidence of myocarditis and other post-vaccine illnesses that either affect them more rapidly, resulting in death, or more slowly, resulting in chronic illness (LINK),

Canadian alternative news source (LINK),