My
Perspective
Everyone's writings are informed by their beliefs and values. We can only see things through the lens of our own perspective. The following is a list of my own beliefs and will inform the reader about the basis on which I have established my views.
First, I am an Historian
In my view the study of History is essential to the sound development of the human mind. There is a reason why the scriptures contain mostly stories from the past. The study of human activity and behavior in the past informs us about what it means to be a human being. We are obviously imperfect creatures. We make mistakes, we have our good days and our bad days. Only one person has ever lived a perfect life so it is unreasonable to expect perfection of ourselves or others. History also teaches us lessons about solving problems. Admittedly most of the examples we read about in the history books are good examples of what not to do, but these are useful if we learn from these negative examples. The study of history also broadens our understanding of peoples and cultures around the world. If we are ever to achieve "world peace" we must first learn to understand each other.
Second, I am a Scientist
In my view, Al Gore doesn't know the first thing about science. The first thing taught in school about science is that the science is never set. All scientific knowledge is subject to review and change when new information is available. As we learn from history, scientific misconceptions can be very hard to unlearn. Just check out the story of Ptolemy's geocentric model of the Universe. The scientific method is a very powerful tool in problem solving and discovery. Unfortunately many scientists today no longer use this practice though they all preach it. Scientists today have an alarming habit of finding evidence to support whatever theory they are proposing. If the new evidence does not support the theory then too often an ad hoc addendum is added to the theory to try to show it is still valid. If it disproves the theory then the evidence is tweaked or ignored.
Third, I am a Mormon
As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I believe the scriptures to be the inspired writings of God's chosen servants. This includes the Bible, The Book of Mormon, and modern revelation contained in the writings of modern day prophets. Unless contradicted by overwhelming physical evidence, I accept the historical accounts contained in the Bible as more credit worthy than the modern translations and interpretations of ancient hieroglyphs. Where modern interpretations differ from the scriptures I tend to put greater credence in the scriptures.
Now that you are aware of the filters through which I view the world I hope you will read the articles I will be posting. My views have evolved as more information has become available so I would be happy to receive any constructive criticism or new information the reader may possess. You can comment on any of my posts by sending an email to jeff@jeffjwilliams.net.