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Is it important to you that your [[beliefs]] are [[wikipedia:Subjectivity_and_objectivity_(philosophy)|objectively]] true? Or do you care more about whether they are [[emotionally]] satisfying? Or whether they conform to the [[Cultural norms|norms]] of your [[in-group]]?
Is it important to you that your [[beliefs]] are [[wikipedia:Subjectivity_and_objectivity_(philosophy)|objectively]] true? Or do you care more about whether they are [[emotionally]] satisfying? Or whether they conform to the [[Cultural norms|norms]] of your [[in-group]]?


<blockquote>''"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them."''  -[[wikipedia:Galileo_Galilei|Galileo Galilei]] </blockquote>The importance of truth can be found under [[trust]], [[lying]], [[misinformation]], [[critical thinking]], [[reality]], and [[science]].   
<blockquote>''"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them."''  -[[wikipedia:Galileo_Galilei|Galileo Galilei]] </blockquote>The importance of truth can be found under [[trust]], [[lying]], [[misinformation]], [[critical thinking]], [[reality]], and [[science]].  An analysis of the [[fractal]] nature of objective truth is on the [[Gödel]] page. <blockquote>''"Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened."''  -[[wikipedia:Winston_Churchill|Sir Winston Churchill]]</blockquote>How can you tell whether you are honestly pursuing truth or falling victim to [[wikipedia:Cognitive_bias|cognitive biases]] or [[wikipedia:Fallacy|logical fallacies]]? These are discussed on the [[science]] and [[critical thinking]] pages.


An analysis of the [[fractal]] nature of objective truth is on the [[Gödel]] page. <blockquote>''"Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened."''  -[[wikipedia:Winston_Churchill|Sir Winston Churchill]]</blockquote>How can you tell whether you are honestly pursuing truth or falling victim to [[wikipedia:Cognitive_bias|cognitive biases]] or [[wikipedia:Fallacy|logical fallacies]]? These are discussed on the [[science]] and [[critical thinking]] pages.
== Does Objective Truth Exist? ==
<blockquote>''"Truth is beautiful, without doubt; but so are lies."''  -[[wikipedia:Ralph_Waldo_Emerson|Ralph Waldo Emerson]]</blockquote>
[[File:Truth-kills-let-them-die.jpg|thumb|255x255px|[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=761gFasivnA&list=PLLHyHi7NUwSamE8YEEmIf43f6u4PkDEXC&t=168s Truth kills, but who's buying?]]]
If [[Beauty]] is Truth and Truth Beauty, then [[Fractal Geometry of God|Fractals]] represent the essence of both.{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHkX67Ijuok||center|Keats's Ode on a Grecian Urn|frame}}
This short video is a good example of the argument that [[subjective]] [[reality]] takes priority over the objective, and uses the [[placebo effect]] as an example. However, there is still an objective reality in the [[brain]] that produces that experience from the action of [[neurons]], and the [[placebo effect]] doesn't just make you "feel" better, it produces chemical changes in the body. Otherwise there would be nothing to feel! Plus, it has been shown that honest [[placebos]] are often just as effective, implying that it may not be necessary to [[believe]] our myths [[literally]] for their [[metanarrative]] to still be powerful.
<br>
 
This short video argues that the [[subjective]] [[reality]] takes priority over the objective, and uses the [[placebo effect]] as an example. However, there is still an objective reality in the [[brain]] that produces that experience from the action of [[neurons]], and the [[placebo effect]] doesn't just make you "feel" better, it produces chemical changes in the body. Otherwise there would be nothing to feel! Plus, it has been shown that honest [[placebos]] are often just as effective, implying that it may not be necessary to [[believe]] our myths [[literally]] for their [[metanarrative]] to still be powerful.
The fact that our experience of [[subjective]] [[reality]] can be changed by our [[beliefs]] is not evidence that [[reality]] itself is [[subjective]], but that is the conclusion many people draw from it.
 
To quote [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rbKWh2-KZg C. Thi Nguyen], "''I'm [[The Gambler|more sure]] about the existence of this coffee cup than I am about my ability to understand complex [[philosophical]] arguments against it''" (see [[The Gambler]]).
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBU1K-HmP1M||center|Is there an objective reality outside of our beliefts?|frame}}
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBU1K-HmP1M||center|Is there an objective reality outside of our beliefts?|frame}}
<br>This video presents a more [[Rational|rationalist]] perspective.
<br>This video presents a more [[Rational|rationalist]] perspective.
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7J-0YJ_rVag||center|Is There Objective Truth? Or Is Reality Subjective, Or a Social Construct?|frame}}
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7J-0YJ_rVag||center|Is There Objective Truth? Or Is Reality Subjective, Or a Social Construct?|frame}}


== Peterson, Harris, and Objective Morality ==
== Does Objective Morality Exist? ==
 
See the [[Ethics#Peterson, Harris, and Objective Morality|Ethics]] page for a discussion of objective [[morality]] based on the commonly referenced ideas of [[Jordan Peterson]], [[wikipedia:Sam_Harris|Sam Harris]], and their many reaction videos.
Since [[metaculture]] has the application of [[science]] to questions of [[morality]] as one of its core tenets, addressing what is meant by "objective morality" and how one might determine it is a useful exercise.
 
The first video below has a long response to Sam Harris's Moral Landscape and rejecting the notion of "objective" [[morality]]. It is unfortunate that he and [[Jordan Peterson]] have been linked by their various appearances together, and that Harris's criticisms of Islam have been used to support [[racist]] [[politics]] and policies. He has otherwise been a leading voice regarding the [[scientific]] approach to [[spiritual]] subjects like [[morality]] and [[meditation]], offering a version of [[atheism]] that is significantly more open-minded than your [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Hitchens Hitchens] or [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Dawkins Dawkins]. The idea that [[science]] can be applied to questions of [[morality]] should be strongly considered.
 
The [[utilitarian]] [[ethics]] of [[metaculture]] avoids these criticisms by recognizing the [[subjective]] nature of self-reporting [[happiness]] and measuring it on the aggregate instead of the individual level. We can know statistically whether one [[society]] or [[culture]] is [[happier]] than another, and whether changes to various policies or beliefs have an impact on that measure. It doesn't claim an objective [[morality]], but rather one that can be [[Self-correcting|improved over time]] with study and comparison. If an "objective" [[morality]] exists it can only be approached and never reached, and each moral grey area must be considered individually--no simple rules apply universally (see [[Gödel]]).  


It also takes a [[perspective]] that fundamentally opposes [[war]] and the use of [[power]] to enforce [[ideology]], and that all [[religions]] and [[cultures]] should be embraced. The argument could be made that certain passages in the Quran form a [[generating equation]] that create a pattern of violence, and significant text could be dedicated to supporting that argument. However, it is inherently divisive and against the [[Perspective|spirit]] of [[universalism]] that [[metaculture]] is striving for. But even if there was strong evidence to support such a view (not saying there is), there would be absolutely no implication that [[discrimination]] or [[violence]] could ever be an acceptable response to it.
== Beauty is Truth and Vice Versa ==


So, instead of the [[perspective]] that "Western [[culture]] is objectively better than others because we invented [[science]] and [[democracy]]" it's more like "[[Science]] allows people of all [[cultures]] to discover their shared humanity and speak about it with a common [[language]]. Let's use this to adopt a [[universal]] system of [[ethics]] so we don't kill each other, and we can solve global problems like [[climate change]] together." It's looking at the same set of facts from a different [[perspective]].
See the [[beauty]] page for your Keats.
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEMB1Ky2n1E||center|Jordan Peterson & The Meaning of Life - Philosophy Tube|frame}}
<br>
Since a good part of the above video uses Sam Harris to make [[Jordan Peterson]]'s philosophy intelligible, here's the video being referenced.
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj9oB4zpHww||center|Science can answer moral questions - Sam Harris|frame}}


== Objectively Good Music ==
== Objectively Good Music ==

Revision as of 19:12, 10 February 2025

It's not true because it's beautiful, it's beautiful because it's true

Is it important to you that your beliefs are objectively true? Or do you care more about whether they are emotionally satisfying? Or whether they conform to the norms of your in-group?

"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them." -Galileo Galilei

The importance of truth can be found under trust, lying, misinformation, critical thinking, reality, and science. An analysis of the fractal nature of objective truth is on the Gödel page.

"Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened." -Sir Winston Churchill

How can you tell whether you are honestly pursuing truth or falling victim to cognitive biases or logical fallacies? These are discussed on the science and critical thinking pages.

Does Objective Truth Exist?

Truth kills, but who's buying?

This short video is a good example of the argument that subjective reality takes priority over the objective, and uses the placebo effect as an example. However, there is still an objective reality in the brain that produces that experience from the action of neurons, and the placebo effect doesn't just make you "feel" better, it produces chemical changes in the body. Otherwise there would be nothing to feel! Plus, it has been shown that honest placebos are often just as effective, implying that it may not be necessary to believe our myths literally for their metanarrative to still be powerful.

The fact that our experience of subjective reality can be changed by our beliefs is not evidence that reality itself is subjective, but that is the conclusion many people draw from it.

To quote C. Thi Nguyen, "I'm more sure about the existence of this coffee cup than I am about my ability to understand complex philosophical arguments against it" (see The Gambler).

Is there an objective reality outside of our beliefts?


This video presents a more rationalist perspective.

Is There Objective Truth? Or Is Reality Subjective, Or a Social Construct?

Does Objective Morality Exist?

See the Ethics page for a discussion of objective morality based on the commonly referenced ideas of Jordan Peterson, Sam Harris, and their many reaction videos.

Beauty is Truth and Vice Versa

See the beauty page for your Keats.

Objectively Good Music

Kamasi Washington - Truth


Lizzo - Truth Hurts
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