Accordingly most gossip is untrue, but care is taken not to verify it. Our neighbour's sins, like the consolations of religion, are so agreeable that we do not stop to scrutinize the evidence closely.
Source: On Education, especially in early childhood, 1926, by Bertrand Russell
More info.: https://russell-j.com/beginner/OE02-190.HTM
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The world is overflowing with "facts." Even the most skeptical individuals don't have time to verify every claim presented to them, and so they are inevitably forced to accept most of them as true. Of course, how much we trust a given "fact" depends on whether it comes from a reliable organization or person.
For example, when it comes to international news, many people might consider the BBC more accurate than NHK.
In countries governed by one-party communist regimes or authoritarian nationalism, people tend to be cautious about taking their leaders' words at face value, knowing how often such statements are unreliable. The troubling reality, however, is that even the leaders of the United States -- once regarded as a champion of democracy -- have been making increasingly untrustworthy statements, sowing confusion around the world.
Donald Trump returned to the presidency in March 2025. Perhaps because he finds "stating the facts" too dull, many of his statements are difficult to evaluate at face value -- it's not easy to tell what's accurate and what's exaggerated or outright false. As a result, we often find ourselves unsure of what to believe.
Today's words from Bertrand Russell serve as a warning about how easily human beings are misled by lies and misinformation. If we make it a daily habit -- even just a little -- to verify the truth for ourselves, we can become less vulnerable to falsehoods. If we can set aside our personal likes and dislikes and commit first to confirming the facts, we may gradually develop the ability to make sounder judgments.
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