Here’s a YouTube video of the 20th century philosopher Bertrand Russell. Russell says a lot in this small clip, but what comes strongly for me, is his insight on self-deception and inexact thinking. He seems to suggest that when we do not formulate our ideas precisely and we do not think with an unobstructed frame of mind, then the outcome of our thinking will be affected by our “prejudices” and “bias.” When, therefore, we have arrived at a conclusion based on inexact and muddled thinking, we can not be sure that, subconsciously, we didn’t shape that conclusion around our preconceived world-view.
Or maybe that’s not what he means at all, and I’m just subconsciously interpreting Russell’s words in such a way that they apply to my own personal experience.
