Facts Needed

Facts are essential to true understanding, to building credible arguments, and to creating honest and worthwhile political or philosophical positions.

This site will have great need for those with specialized knowledge, researching abilities, and writing capabilities.

Underlying everything will be facts. But facts are often elusive or subject to interpretation. And some things are just not knowable. This site will constantly endeavor to be factually accurate. Interpretations of facts, or actions recommended on the basis of facts, will be not be confused with the facts themselves.

For example: The polar bears are endangered. Fact?

Well, it depends on how you define "endangered" and whether you believe the claim that the ice they live on is melting. Currently, the melting of their habitat in the future is based on computer projections. But others say that while some ice is melting, the remaining ice in the area is getting thicker. Some have pointed to previous computer projections that have been wrong. Others mention that the polar bear population has increased from 5000 to 25,000 in the last few decades. Still others see the polar bears as being cut off from areas they once inhabited, disturbing their mating and feeding patterns.

So, are polar bears endangered?

Whatever the members decide, the position that gets posted to AmericanPlatform.org will explain what we considered and why we reached the conclusion we did. And it may be that no decision can be reached. If that's the case, that's what we'll post.

Most of the time, answers sought by members from other members will be needed as part of a larger issue they are considering. To continue the above example, members may be trying to decide whether or not we should advocate drilling in ANWR. The polar bears are now officially recognized as endangered, but the decision is controversial, with many believing that it is an attempt by environmentalists and others to thwart any drilling in the region. So all this information needs to be sorted out. Both sides need to be weighed and openly discussed, and the more information we have the better.

The members could conceivably come up with a variety of positions to take. They could conclude that, yes, the polar bears are endangered, but the need for our energy independence and security overrides the preservation of the bears. Or, no, they are not endangered, but getting oil from ANWR won't come fast enough, or won't be enough. Or....

You get the picture. This site will make decisions based on the best available information and through open discussion of that information. Ramifications have to be discussed. The possibility of unintended consequences has to be considered. Political, economic and social concerns have to be taken in to account.

Not everything will be vague or subject to interpretation, however. How many hate crimes against Muslims were there in the U.S. in the year 2000? Amnesty International will have a number, and so will the Federal Government, and probably other groups, so at least a number range can be determined. A member or group of members may throw out the request for these answers as part of, say, a response to the charge that America just hates Muslims. Having the numbers from the above mentioned sources will allow them to move forward with the response they are putting together.

So, there will be a great need for those who are adept at finding not only facts, but sources of all sorts of information. AmericanPlatform.org will not, however, accept as fact information from, for instance, a site named DAVEHATESLIBERALS.COM. If you are researching you'll need to find out where DAVE got this info. If it turns out to be documentable and true, fine. Quote the original source. The point is that there is so much incorrect and distorted information on the web that great caution needs to be taken. The good and honest reputation of AmericanPlatform.org will be at stake every day, and we'll be counting on our members to have the highest of standards.

Remember that if you find information that contradicts your original premise, it's better to change the premise than change or ignore the facts. We want the truth, not ideological purity. One great complaint about the media in general is that they leave out important bits of information, or whole stories, if it contradicts their ideological agenda, or makes their guy look bad.

We must always stop ourselves from doing this or we will be no better.