Mark Twain once said, “facts are stubborn things.” And GenuLines knows that not checking the facts can kick you like a stubborn mule!
Learn the Facts Before Passing Judgment
Adversity often occurs when people react without having all the facts. Sometimes, they’ll think they have the facts but they’ve learned the wrong information.
Avoiding these situations is a matter of getting the facts and making sure they”re correct.
When you have the facts on your side, you can present your argument.
Further, you will be less likely to make a judgment about a situation because the facts back it up. This will prevent you from getting yourself and others into any trouble.
The internet offers us a vast pool of information. But people tend to be too willing to trust any information they find.
They get a false sense of security, believing that the first search engine results are the best. That’s not always the case.
Search engine results change with time. You can get different results from one search to the next on the same search engine.
Look for a variety of sources that you believe carry authority.
For instance, when you look for medical advice, don’t stop at a site such as WebMD.com and call it quits. While this website may have qualified advice, it’s not the only source.
Another could be the Journal of The American Medical Association (JAMA) website.
When you find other websites, look for sources that the articles cite.
Are they valid sources?
Check to make sure they’re from authoritative people.
Watch for red flags. Like blogs that make claims but don’t cite sources.
Anyone can create a blog, and have it published in minutes. They’re free to publish whatever they like.
That’s why readers must be critical of every source they treat as fact.
There’s nothing wrong with a blogger posting an obvious opinion piece. But, don’t accept the post as fact.
Treat it as a good starting point for your research.
You’ll hear people cite Wikipedia.org as a source for their facts. While that resource has gotten better at fact-checking, don’t lose sight that anyone can add and make changes to it.
Still, it does have some uses. At the end of most articles, there’s a wealth of resources and links that authors often include.
Use them for further research.
JohnK 11-26-2019
Overheard: “There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.” ~Arthur Conan Doyle (The Boscombe Valley Mystery)
Post image by Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
RSS - Posts
Have your say!