The Curse Of Knowledge II

To break down a structure requires a structure. But the universe does not have to have humanly conceivable structures. When there is no structure, the reductionists posit one just to break it down. They define the term, categorize it, then define the categories. Soon, someone comes along to propose another substructure to the categories. This is an infinite loop of man-made knowledge. They keep going deep into the rabbit hole they have dug for themselves. What they are really doing is imposing onto the universe their definitions and categories. They are creating a universe that is characterized by their knowledge. This universe, however, doesn't have to be anything more than imaginary. Thus, I am afraid, knowledge keeps people blind. The truth may be right in front of them but they can't see it, for they want to see the universe they have formulated. They want what they know to be true. They want what they think to be true. Their knowledge has become their curse. People in psychology discuss a phenomenon called belief perseverance. Once you plant a belief system in a man's brain, he is likely to ignore any contradictory evidence in the future and get tunnel-visioned on supporting evidence. This is why governments want children to go to school so they can implant wrong beliefs, to begin with. Once the children grow up, not only they don't question their governments, they often defend political and legal institutions. Today, almost no one thinks that keeping an army and police may be wrong because the governments are bound to wage war against other nations and against their own citizens. Almost everyone respects the law and the legal system in their country when these institutions are corrupt beyond imagination. It is not the case that the masses are dumb. They simply haven't known any other reality. Democracy and the rule of law are all they have ever seen and known. From early in life, they have not been exposed to anything else. The government has their trust. And people don't know what they don't know. Moreover, there is no one to tell them what they don't know. Are they even open to that much epistemic pain? This is why the exercise of philosophy is not learning but unlearning, not building up, but going backward. It is to escape the bubble of man-made knowledge. It is not to know but to not know. In not knowledge or Agnosia things may become visible.

The first part is here - https://www.philosophicallyinclined.com/post/curse-of-knowledge