A piece of text art with the words “Facing up to reality has its drawbacks”.

It seems that practically everybody’s mental model of how the world (and the universe) works is held together by a scaffolding of assumptions.

These assumptions cover such matters as how the world was created, the place of humans in the universe, the nature of human nature, the political mechanisms that are necessary for a functioning society, the nature of society, the purpose of life and so on.

Most of these assumptions are the product of the human imagination and are more likely than not to reflect the way that people want the world to be rather than the way that it is.

Many people for instance believe in a God who created and cares for the universe. People believe this not because it’s true but because they want I to be true. Some people believe that the idea world is one without national borders and in which everyone loves everyone else. They believe this not because it could ever realistically be possible but because they like the idea and it makes them feel good about themselves.