The Whole Facts and
Nothing But the Facts    

   Here at Views, we don't want your vote, and we don't charge you a penny for our thoughts. So, is our publication unbiased and totally reliable?  

   With misinformation littering the world, it's hard to trust our sources, whether we want to engage city hall, or just know the truth for truth's sake.

   Former U.S. senator and Florida governor Bob Graham offers help in his book, America, the Owner's Manual: You Can Fight City Hall - and Win.

   "Above all, be credible," Graham writes. "The biggest danger of the Information Age is the proliferation of unreliable or biased data, particularly data on the Internet." 

   "First, don't rely on outdated information. Work with the most recent data possible."

   "Second, don't confine your research to your local community. The world of ideas does not reside in your zip code."

   "Third, take care in your use of biased sources. Although many ... organizations ... attempt to be balanced and unbiased, some groups and think tanks produce information that reflects a particular political agenda or ideological viewpoint. Reinforce data with research from unimpeachable sources."  

   "Fourth, investigate the credentials of your data source." Graham says a state official or a professor with multiple degrees and years of experience may be far more reliable than a lay person. 

   "Fifth, don't limit your research to traditional, usually secondary, source information."

   "Sixth, don't try to bury information that is unfavorable to your cause. Since you have found it, (others) have done so as well. Proactively present the 'bad facts' and show how other information undermines their significance."

   "Seventh, keep up to date. In this era of rapid change, even the best-researched facts must be monitored to ensure they ... haven't been overtaken by events." 

Tampa Bay Times

   It is challenging to find good information, and to know it when we see it. In any case, the founders expected us to be informed if the government - at any level - is really by, for and of the people.

      Jimmy