For those who are returning; have you considered the questions of the last two posts? Thanks for hanging on through some brain-stretching and soul-searching. The questions I’ve posed have been more than philosophical ramblings, or words to fill a page. We live in a time when information is continually fed—even force-fed—to us through many sources. We have more facts and figures available than any other time in history, but the source’s truth-filter may or may not be operative.

In a world where opinions fly faster than jets, terms like relative-truth and situational ethics seem to fit, or perhaps were deliberately crafted for that reason. I once heard someone say: “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not entitled to their own truth.” Opinions involve individual views, ideas and observations, but truth is defined as being in accordance with fact or reality. Truth implies firmness, stability and security.

Which leads me to another question: Can you feel secure in trusting if there isn’t the conviction that something or someone is really true? That isn’t to say that we should be skeptical about everything. Cynicism can turn ugly, quickly! But no one wants to check their brain at the door and be deceived. Do they?

I recently saw a car with two bumper stickers: “Don’t believe everything you think” and “Honk if you don’t exist.” I don’t know where the driver was coming from, and sure don’t know where he was headed, but I think he may have been trapped in a truth-warp. While the bumper stickers may cause some snickers, they point to the need for critical thinking–objective (verses purely subjective) analysis of evidence, information and arguments in order to form a judgment.

And that is part of my reason for renaming my blog, “The Story Behind the Story.” More on that later, but did you notice what else is different on the website? You can read the entire Part One of The Bridge from OneDayBow Trilogy, complete with illustrations for free. Why would I do that? More on that next time too.