katelepsis

For virtuous behavior to be possible, human beings must not hold any beliefs which are false, for if they did it might be possible for these false beliefs to form the premises of arguments which lead to the conclusion that another, true belief is false.   The Stoics agree with Socrates that, if we want to have a really good life, a life of the sort that humans beings are programmed and constructed to have, we have to have knowledge of certain facts, in the first instance of the world around us , we need to be sure that what we think we know we really do know; and we need to have a theory which explains how this is possible.  Now the Stoics distinguished between opinion, a variable epistemic state characteristic of human beings who are not sages, and knowledge which only the sage possesses.

Fact: if you close the garage door and sit in the garage running the car you will die.

Opinion:  Well I think breathing CO2 is good and healthy, I am going to heat my home out of my cars tailpipe.

Fact:   Mercury and other heavy metals are bad for breathing
Opinion:  Mercury and heavy metals being a hazard for human health is just nonsense.

Fact:  Concentrating too much wealth leads to absolute corruption
Opinion: Wealth in any amount is a good thing as it causes all men to strive for becoming rich.

Fact: Most humans do not strive for wealth and power and are creative and productive by nature
Opinion:  Humans are born in Sin and and are intrinsically evil only a harsh brutal competitive world can create any good.

Fact: War is not healthy for humans and other living beings
Opinion:  War is a necessary component of a great democracy so long as civilized discourse and deliberation direct the violence towards appropriately considered goals.

Opinion or Fact?  The bible is the root of all morality and virtue?

Capitalism is the one and only, the end of history is upon us and as soon as we bring all into the truth of our way the entire world will be as one.

Opinion or Fact?  We have killed 50% of the planet, we are killing the Oceans, We have decimated all animal and bird species, We are overheating the planet, we are depleting the soil and will soon reach a limit, overpopulation is going to cause big problems, toxic chemicals are overloading the ecosystem and leading to cancer and other diseases, radiation is not good, abortion is bad, teaching evolution is false science, the bible is literal fact, women are evil, humans are born in original sin, earning 1 million times as much as another is acceptable?