The Dystopian Times, 23. In the Absence of Logic...

People do not stop astounding. There are those who do not believe a scientist, yet will believe a YouTuber, and affirm that the pandemic is a hoax. There are those that truly believe aliens were captured at Roswell. And then, there are the flat-earthers that beat the rest, hands down, for lack of brain cell usage.

After six centuries, or more, because the Romans always thought so, it should be apparent that the Earth is round. Logic is all it takes to understand this. A flight on an airplane is more than enough to know that Columbus was right.  

It came to light these days, that a couple from Venice, set out to prove the Earth was flat by attempting to reach its southern edge. Last April, they flouted lockdown, and drove all the way to close to Palermo, in Sicily. There, they sold their car, and bought a boat with the money they got for the car. With that boat, they wanted to set sail to Lampedusa, and from there, to the edge of the Earth. Where, on their map, they believe Africa lies, is a mystery. 

But, their prowess in sailing was sadly lacking. They wound up near the island of Ústica, to the north of Palermo, thirsty and exhausted. They were rescued by the Guardia Costera, after the couple implored them to leave behind their cell phones before they came on board their boat, because cell phone technology is "dangerous." The Guardias discovered the couple had been using a compass, though without much understanding of how to use it. They had gone north instead of west and then south. The couple were towed into Palermo, where they had to quarantine for two weeks, since they had driven down from Venice, where the lockdown was going strong.

But the couple wouldn't stay still. They tried to escape on their boat, again. This time, they ended up at the house of a man who assured them he had Covid. It wasn't true, but they were quarantined again, for a longer period of time. This time, they stayed still, and apparently went back to Venice when they were declared healthy to travel, leaving behind their boat. 

Really, lack of logic is rampant within humanity. From flat-earthers to firm believers in Trump, people have to run mental tricks to avoid being hit with the truth of the matter. When something is so widespread, that every media agency, every library, every school, every half-way intelligent person accepts that truth, why are there so many who will continue to deny it? Is it a wish to be different from others? You can be different, but the truth won't change because of that. Critical thinking does not mean automatically denying what everyone else asserts as true. It means finding out for yourself evidence that backs up an assertion. There is plenty of evidence backing up the fact that the Earth is round, just as there is plenty of evidence pointing to the fact that a pandemic is raging out there. I wish people would use a little logic, just a little. 

Life continues.