Is it better to believe nothing is true?

Isocrates image Wikipedia. Isocrates was a sophist who wrote a book called “Against the Sophists.” The post here is in the tradition of Isocrates.

A philosopher argues that it is reasonable to conclude that nothing is true and that it provides some distinct advantages. But, is that true?

A senior lecturer at the University of Manchester argued in an Aeon article on November 17 that nothing is true. The headline announced “This Essay Isn’t True.” So, ok, the clickbait headline got my attention and, intrigued, I tried to follow the argument.

If what this philosopher says is true (which is impossible, of course, based on his own argument) then the sun won’t rise tomorrow, the Republicans won the Senate, and I am playing golf right now instead of writing this response.

So, let’s see if we can understand what he is trying to say and if there is any value in it. First he talks about what we assume about true beliefs:

“Almost everyone holds true beliefs about many things — their name, where they live, what year it is, and a vast array of other topics. And everybody holds some beliefs and makes some assertions, of course, that aren’t true — and some people make a lot of assertions that aren’t true. But the point is that there are lots of true beliefs and assertions, so there are lots of true things.”

He then suggests much hangs on the question if there are really true assertions or true things: