Desired conclusions retroactively validate whatever evidence seems to support them
Evidence
With regime change per se a hard sell—and a violation of international law—the alleged imminent grave threat of lethal weapons in Saddam’s hands became the reason for preemptive military action. The Bush administration having made the decision to oust Saddam, the intelligence and the facts were shaped to justify it. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2316 (
#expands, via linked claim)
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Belief systems respond to contrary evidence by discounting the evidence; Belief systems reject disconfirming evidence rather than revising theories; Relativist epistemology enables both discrediting good evidence and validating bad evidence — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting…, 1826 (+12 more)
Broader Connections
- Decision-makers shape facts to retroactively justify an already-chosen course of action
#expands(0.95) — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2316 - Belief systems respond to contrary evidence by discounting the evidence
#expands(0.85) - Belief systems reject disconfirming evidence rather than revising theories
#expands(0.82) - Archival evidence can be cherry-picked to support dubious claims
#exemplifies(0.80) - Belief perseverance persists even when evidence establishing it is shown false
#expands(0.78) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 2586 - Relativist epistemology enables both discrediting good evidence and validating bad evidence
#expands(0.75) — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1826