Reevaluating Beliefs Quotes

If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts.

As I grow older, I have had to discard some ideas and policies because they no longer make sense. This strikes me as entirely healthy. I would invite others to do the same.

The interesting thing is always to see if you can find a fact that will change your mind about something, to test and see if you can.

Why should we hesitate to toss the old views overboard.

It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.

It's really important, whether you're a conservative or a liberal, to always challenge the conventional wisdom, which is what I've tried to do in all my work.

For those who do not think, it is best at least to rearrange their prejudices once in a while.

Our opinions become fixed at the point where we stop thinking.

The path of least resistance and least trouble is a mental rut already made. It requires troublesome work to undertake the alternation of old beliefs.

We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts appeared before us, startled us, and then caused us to question beliefs that were strongly fixed in our consciousness-embedded there by years of family prejudices, orthodox schooling, imbibing of newspapers, radio, and television. This would seem to lead to a simple conclusion: that we all have an enormous responsibility to bring to the attention of others information they do not have, which has the potential of causing them to rethink long-held ideas.

I don't think it's helpful to go dismantling the past, but you can refuse to honor aspects of it that you don't believe in anymore.

I am something of a contrarian, I suppose. I feel less comfortable when everybody agrees with me. I say, 'I better reexamine my position!' I probably believe that the worst opinions in my court have been unanimous. Because there's nobody on the other side pointing out all the flaws.

That which seems the height of absurdity in one generation often becomes the height of wisdom in another.

Things that I felt absolutely sure of but a few years ago, I do not believe now. This thought makes me see more clearly how foolish it would be to expect all men to agree with me.

What could be more foolish than to base one's entire view of life on ideas that, however plausible at the time, now appear to be quite erroneous? And what would be more important than to find our true place in the universe by removing one by one these unfortunate vestiges of earlier beliefs?

Actually, I began to think that maybe there is a god, after all. Or maybe it's a different one. The old one got fired.

If we all worked on the assumption that what is accepted as true is really true, there would be little hope of advance.

Differences challenge assumptions.

It's sad that we never get trained to leave assumptions behind.