# Competing Truth Claims By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2023-05-15 One of the consequences of the decline in classical education is that people have less familiarity with philosophy. Within philosophy, the pursuit of truth is frequently a central aim. Historically, the conception of truth had some correspondence to fact or reality. As our shared grounding with this understanding has eroded, our conceptions of what truth is have changed. What has emerged is a notion of truth that more closely aligns with opinion. Under this conception people can, and often do, have competing truth claims. Truth has largely become simply whatever one thinks or holds to be correct. From this perspective, there seems to be very little motivation to work together to determine what is factually accurate. If each has its own truth, why would anyone spend effort trying to refine our collective understandings? Competing truth claims are ambiguous. They can be beneficial if they spark inquiry. They can be detrimental if they entrench divides. Thinking philosophically is not esoteric as our society has increasingly dismissed it as being. Rather, thinking philosophically is the foundation of human advancement. Working and discussing this together could help establish if this is true. #### Related Items [[Philosophy]] [[Education]] [[Truth]] [[Society]] [[Thinking]]