Donald Trump and the Abandoning of Logic

I have spent a fair amount of time, in recent months, attempting to understand conservative Trump supporters and how they could possibly be comfortable with what they see happening in government right now. My thought was, "How could they see all of what I see and still come to the conclusion that this is good?" But, I think I've got it. The epiphany actually came to me from watching and interacting with many of my liberal friends. Here is what I have concluded:

Reason can be defined as "the drawing of conclusions or inferences from observations, facts, or assumptions." Most scientists and scholars accept that the most reliable form of reasoning is logic. Logic is the use of certain algorithms (deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning, etc) to come to conclusions. Logic is a scientific system, really. It relies heavily on evidence. Logic is ONE system of reasoning. But, logic is not the ONLY system of reasoning. For whatever reason, logic has long been the commonly accepted best practice for most situations. But, it is not the only way to come to conclusions.

What I have learned is that, in recent years, people have become less and less dependent upon logic. People have begun to abandon logic on favor of emotional reasoning (the basing of opinion solely on one's own feelings rather than evidence). I am not suggesting that emotional reasoning is always wrong. Intuition, gut feelings, and the like are perfectly sound cognitive processes, in certain settings. But, this form of reasoning will fail you in many situations. Sadly, I have noticed that an increasing number of people, intelligent and educated people, have begun to use emotional reasoning in situations that we once would have all agreed were better suited for the use of formal logic.

I say all that to say this. If you are attempting to wrap your mind around why a person thinks the things they think, despite evidence that clearly refutes what they think, keep in mind that your attempt is likely an exercise in futility. Attempting to argue with or even understand a person who is using emotional reasoning, while you yourself are using logic, is an utter waste of time. One cannot use logic to explain emotional reasoning. You are holding your subject to a set of rules that they have not agreed to. This is a lot like playing a game of pick up basketball where one team is playing by NCAA rules and the other is playing by street ball rules. One side has a distinct advantage.

I truly fear what this means for our society. As we stray further and further from intellectual rigor, the Donald Trumps of the world will gain more and more ground. Trust me, my friends, it is not just the conservatives who have abandoned logic in their thinking. Just food for thought.