Burden of Proof

Philosophy is to seek the truth. In order for this truth to emerge during an argument, certain rules have to be observed.

Burden of Proof is a more legal term used in a court of law. In criminal law the owness lies on the prosecutor to prove guilt. In a civil law court, the claimant has the responsibility to prove that a law has been broken.

When we write a blog more often than not, the burden of proof falls on the writer to justify why statements are made. If you think about it that is a big responsibility to accept.

When we have the courage to stand by our convictions or opinions, then we need to be base our arguments on sound evidence.

This can be done in 1 of 4 ways;

1. Assertion- this is using a certain belief to prove an argument,
2. Rational - this is by logic and structure,
3. Verification -this is by using a hypotheses and prove it to be true or false ie Pros and Cons,
4. Falsification - state that because something is true in one circumstance does not mean it true in all situations.

So you can see we have a number of tools to use when we put across our opinion to the reader.

We all have our individual truths, but only when target people agree a truth does it have any external value. This is how arguments develop on our WA Platform. It's also how they can be solved. Healthy discussions without getting personal are the way we grow.

More recently my hope is that people with power will follow their better selves in putting forward their arguments. I know this is naive but, we have seen some of that here in the current crisis and hopefully some leaders will have learned that, if they govern for the general good, their place in history will be positive.

How are you going to structure your argument to make positive impact in you readers' lives?

Which ever way it is, I would recommend it is a balanced argument.

A balanced argument is one that provides a full understanding of the issues involved, weighs their evidence carefully, and presents the best solution, in the form of a well written blog.

Our burden of proof is to prove that there are better alternatives or that there are not?

That way the truth will be highlighted in your blog and hopefully make a positive difference to your reader.

Have a Great Day

Jen