a) a statement offered in explanation or justification
b) a rational ground or motive
c) the thing that makes some facts intelligible
d) a sufficient ground of explanation or a logical defense
As a wit once said, "There's nothing common about common sense." The same holds true for reason. It comes in small quantities in our combative society.
A lot of people today have the attitude that reason is a form of weakness. Much like compromise.
"Ours not the reason why, ours but to do and die!" - Alfred Lord Tennyson
The best example of this attitude is Trump's cult followers. Like sheep they are content to follow their master by re-bleating everything he has to say.
In TrumpWorld, reason is a ruinous runaway to reality. Something loyal subjects would prefer to avoid.
People are often driven by passion, but it's only those that use reason as a rein that become successful in life.
The line between reason and madness grows thinner during these days of internal chaos in America.
It's reasonable to say our democracy has never faced a bigger threat than Trump's ongoing assault against it.
Marya Mannes once said, "The sign of an intelligent people is their ability to control their emotions by the application of reason."
Reason can come in one form or another. As the Dalai Lama preached, "The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual's own reason and critical analysis."
As Lord Byron argued, "Those who will not reason, are bigots, those who cannot, are fools, and those who dare not, are slaves."
In our savage society it's hard to stay grounded and happy. I leave you with a quote from Wilkie Collins, "Peace rules the day where reason rules the mind."
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