In ancient Greece (469 - 399 BC), Socrates was
widely lauded for his wisdom.
One day an acquaintance ran up to him excitedly and
said, "Socrates, do you know what I just heard about Diogenes?"
"Wait a moment," Socrates replied,
"Before you tell me I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the
Triple Filter Test."'Triple filter?" asked the acquaintance.
"That's right," Socrates continued,
"Before you talk to me about Diogenes let's take a moment to filter what
you're going to say. The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure
that what you are about to tell me is true?"
"No," the man said, "Actually I just
heard about it."
"All right," said Socrates, "So you
don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second filter, the
filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about Diogenes something
good?"
"No, on the contrary..."
"So," Socrates continued, "You want
to tell me something about Diogenes that may be bad, even though you're not
certain it's true?"
The man shrugged, a little embarrassed. Socrates
continued, "You may still pass the test though, because there is a third
filter, the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about Diogenes
going to be useful to me?"
"No, not really."
"Well," concluded Socrates, "If what
you want to tell me is neither True nor Good nor even useful, why tell it to me
or anyone at all?"
The man was bewildered and ashamed. This is an
example of why Socrates was a great philosopher and held in such high esteem.
It also explains why Socrates never found out that
Diogenes was having an affair with his wife !! ;) :D
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