The Committee for the Fourth R
Our mission is to perfect, promote and practice the reasoning process (the 4th “R”), working in and with the community.
We take three questions seriously: What is reasoning? Why is it important? Why does it need to be promoted in the community?
What Is Reasoning?
Most simply, reasoning is giving reasons (usually called “premises”) for the decisions and judgments we make. Premises and conclusion together make an argument.
We employ reasoning all the time; if we didn’t, we couldn’t stay alive. Consider a simple everyday example: You are standing on the curb of a busy street, and in the back of your mind you say to yourself:
As you can see, reasoning is a process which must follow a certain pattern to be effective.
In this, reason is like arithmetic. Consider this addition:
Similarly, we get an erroneous answer when we don’t follow the reasoning process, i.e. when we don’t reason well.
Reasoning well requires not only that you follow the reasoning process, but also that you be aware of your premises and examine them, that you identify the issues (questions) they raise, and that you make sure your thoughts are clearly expressed.
When we fail to follow the reasoning process, we lose the framework that allows us to put our thoughts in proper order. So no matter how many facts we have, no matter how pure the principles we follow, we can’t depend on arriving at a justified decision.
In the traffic example above, the reasoning process is simple, obvious and automatic. But in other cases, for example when we think about questions of national policy, the reasoning is complex and far from obvious. Most people are able to reason through the automatic and simple cases, but when it comes to the complex cases they are at a loss.
Reasoning together is the reasoning process between two or more people. It requires reasoning well about the other persons’ arguments as well as our own – identifying their arguments, examining them, criticizing them, and so on. In addition it requires that everyone focus on the same issues (i.e., not “talk at cross-purposes”).
Reasoning together and doing it well is important for our democracy. First, because citizens must make good decisions if the policies they decide on are to turn out well. Second, reasoning together allows all parties to understand one another and arrive at a mutually acceptable course.
The alternative to reasoned decision making is demagoguery and decisions
based on superficial solutions to deep-lying problems,
Reasoning and the Community
Despite the need for reasoning in politics and other areas of life, it is sadly lacking in our society, as we can see by looking at the media and political discussions for example.
But reasoning is a mental activity that can be learned, like reading, math or any other subject. So why not let the schools take care of it? There are three reasons why we can’t leave it to the schools:
What the Committee for the Fourth “R” does
The main activity of the Committee for the Fourth “R” is to conduct group discussions – reasoned discussions – on topics of social importance (e.g., censorship on the Internet, school vouchers). These are called “C.L.U.R.T.” groups (for “Come Let Us Reason Together”). Other groups are devoted to understanding and defining the meanings of important ideas (e.g. “What is a liberal and what is a conservative?” “What is privacy?”)
Some of these groups are sponsored directly by The Committee for the Fourth “R.” In some cases, other organizations sponsor the discussions and the Committee provides leadership.
In addition, we are dedicated to promoting the reasoning process in
any way possible throughout the community through teaching and informing.
For further information on The Committee for the Fourth “R,”
including reports on its discussions, see the web page for the Lakewood
Public Library.
To get in touch with The Committee for the Fourth “R,” write in care of the Lakewood Public Library, 15425 Detroit Ave., Lakewood OH 44107. Or call the director at 226-6105.
August 1998