The Current Worldwide Crisis: Irrelevant Truth, Public Opinion and Operant Slogans

For fifty years at Towson University, I taught the importance of evaluating evidence for its validity but also for its effectiveness.  Truth and valid evidence in time of war is a different animal with only limited value.

There is a time-honored expression regarding war: “Truth is the first casualty.”   This is indubitably true, especially in a world with so many sources of information, all of whom have their own agendas, independent of telling the truth, even if it takes some time to establish that truth.

One of the problems is the competition to be first, to get the attention of the vast reading audience.

Second, in addition, there is little penalty for being incorrect, especially if there is an audience that will not immediately suffer from your imprecision or your simple errant reporting.

Thus, there is the problem of getting accurate evidence; there is a good slogan, falsely ascribed to Mark Twain and Winston Churchill but originated in a sentiment by Jonathan Swift, that addresses itself to this question: “A lie travels around the globe while the truth is putting on its shoes.”

The third major problem is that for much of the public, their preconceived view of conflict – who is to blame and who deserves the violence being visited upon them – is evidence resilient; that is, no amount of evidence is sufficient to change their minds.

Thus, the obstacles from which communicating truth suffer include access to accurate reporting, the mixture of sources, many of whom are interested only in propagandizing, while others are interested in selective truth per their ideological, personal, and material interests.  And, finally, there are not many persuadable by evidence counter to their preconceived heroes’ and villains’ “truths.”

In the current crisis that began on October 7, Israel was surprise attacked by thousands of rockets and troop infiltration by the terror group Hamas without warning, killing 1400 Israelis, many of whom were at a music festival, others of whom were in their homes in kibbutzim.   Some at the event were taken hostage and infiltration with Israelis being dragged through the street in violation after violation of international law.

In the subsequent inadvertent bombing by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad of the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza, most news agencies errantly blamed Israel, such as The New York Times, Al Jazeera and others, so intent were they on being the first with the information.  Jewish haters such as Israel and Jewish-hater Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib have not as of this writing even corrected their postings on this matter.

President Joe Biden’s plans to meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas were canceled due to the possibly honest perception by them that Israel was responsible for the hospital bombing.  Since this has happened there has been no public apology offered by said leaders.

Videos and tapings of Hamas have established the unique horror of the terrorists, killing parents in front of their children, children in front of their parents, gruesome murders of citizens, and the elderly and babies with unparalleled unspeakable inhumane murders.

Is there any of this evidence that changes minds?  Are the thousands of anti-Semitic and anti-Israel protesters ever moved to read, and if to read, to have their views affected?

I have seen evidence provided by conservative American media put to marchers in interviews, and none of them has even iterated a doubt as to the wisdom of their pro-Hamas points of view.

In the current crisis, Israel has a policy of “Roof Knocking,” employed by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as part of their efforts to protect innocent Palestinians from bombing attacks, to minimize human casualties.

 Is there a comparable policy of Hamas?  Are demonstrators aware of the Hamas Charter which is full of operative statements regarding Jewish people:

“The time (for realizing the promise of Allah) will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews and kill them…Muslim! there is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him.”

Valid evidence has its place, and as the better people than terrorists like Hamas, we must insist on it; regardless through ignorance and steadfastness, terrorists and their dupes will never take it into account regarding their preferences.