Hume and Human Emotion

The late Scotsman David Hume (1711-1776) was a philosopher. Historically, considered one of the preeminent philosophers, Hume concluded that intellect is a servant to emotion and that the primary task of intellect is to calm or subdue emotion. In the vast majority of cases, he is undoubtedly correct. Yet, most accused of this would likely be somewhat offended. For many, preference is given to qualities like study, questioning, determination, establishment, judgment, examination, fact gathering, studying, and verifying.

I doubt we would use any of these decision factors in determining who, for example, is or was, the best female singer. Why, because that is a completely subjective determination and decision, and besides the late Whitney Houston rose above all – an idiosyncratic opinion, I admit, but listen if you will and read if you must.

The worst offenders of determining factors though are those that use immediate or instantaneous, thoughtless, and baseless emotion to arrive at a critical decision. The abstract speculator is one that determines, without thought, and at once, the motive, reason, intent, and impulsiveness for an action – and all of those are based on unjustified or simply reactive emotion.

A prime example would be the stories around the Canadian Indian Residential Schools. This school system was a network of boarding schools for young indigenous, native, or First Nations people. This network was publicly funded by the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs. It was operated and administered by Christian churches – with the majority or 60% managed by the Roman Catholic Church. The schools ran from the mid-1830s to 1970s and approximately 150,000 children, nationally, were placed in these schools. A lot of politically progressive abhorrence has been set toward the concept and application of residential schools. The historical saga and the chronicles of these organizations have divided many.

There was a resurgence of this era starting in 2021 when 215 children were thought to be buried around the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia. The discovery was made using ground-penetrating radar. There have been a number of claims since including:

• 751 unmarked graves at the Cowessess First Nation in Saskatchewan;

• 182 unmarked graves at the Lower Kootenay Band in British Columbia;

• 160 unmarked graves at the Kuper Island Industrial School site near Chemainus, British Columbia; and,

• 14 anomalies at the site of the former Pine Creek Residential School northwest of Winnipeg, Manitoba.

In honor of these stories, the Government of Canada implemented a “National Day for Truth and Reconciliation”, with politicians profusely apologizing to all native bands for the historical acts of cruelty and atrocities. And of course with political retribution comes substantial funds from the taxpayer coffers. As The New York Post wrote in May of 2022, “The Canadian government and provincial authorities pledged about $320 million to fund more research and in December pledged another $40 billion involving First Nations child-welfare claim settlements that partially compensate some residential school attendees.”

Yet none of these gravesites have panned out as people expected - the linked article here is the latest one. The originally claimed gravesite in Kamloops is believed to be an abandoned sewer system.  An article from Frontier Centre for Public Policy (FCPP) illustrates the antics and shenanigans that seem to thrive in this matter. However, none of this mattered to the irrational secular and instantaneously emoted who immediately, upon the first discovery went around and in an act of irrational vengeance, set fires to churches. Conrad Black in a National Post article hosted by MSN writes eloquently on the matter.

This article is about the impulsiveness of specific people and absolutely not about chastising or hurting native people. Perhaps some gravesites with the bodies of indigenous children and youth, that were enlisted in Canadian Indian Residential Schools, will be found. That is not the reason for looking at this matter, rather I am using it as a clear example of the carelessness and impetuousness of people seeking culpability and blame with no proof or confirmation. Rather, a vacuous process and action with no rational forethought.

This is exactly the type of action many people take with climate change. There has never been any empirical evidence or factual science that proves humans cause or have caused, in any manner, the climate of the earth to change - not by emitting their relatively small quantity of carbon dioxide through the burning of fossil fuels, not by any activity involved in the production of electricity or any other power or by raising ruminant hoofed herbivorous animals that instinctively fart.

The most minute of things, relative to the vastness of weather on Earth is sufficient proof for many. It must be or only a very small number would ever consider it a reality.