The Logic of Dav*

A. Albert Einstein was a genius.
B. Albert Einstein was a man.
C. All men are geniuses.

There has long been a suspicion that Dav* H*nry’s obvious disconnect from reality might be due to some earlier sports writing injury, but his column of May 24, 2007 gives us an insight into his non-thinking processes. For brevity here are the pertinent excerpts:

“The problem with the government funding needle exchange programs - which are designed to reduce the spread of diseases such as hepatitis and HIV by giving sterile syringes to drug users - is the logic behind such programs.”

“Study after study tout statistics that say syringe exchange programs - or SEPs - do not result in increased drug use, which more than likely means illegal drugs.”

“How is this possible?”

“There is no debate that SEPs probably result in a decrease in local rates of hepatitis and HIV, but no increase in drug use?”

“Before Texas jumps on the SEP bandwagon, these studies that contend there is no increase in drug use because of SEPs need to be looked at with a wary eye, otherwise taxpayers will get stuck.”

Mr. H*nry is fond of invoking logic, but apparently never learned the meaning of the word through five years of journalism school. If the object of the SEP program is to reduce the spread of disease, and there is “no debate that SEPs probably result in a decrease” in disease, then there is not a problem with the logic behind the program.

The real problem is Dav* H*nry’s assumption that providing the drug delivery system to users must therefore encourage more drug use. That his assumption is not borne out by the many studies, by the evidence and the conclusions, leads him – logically -- to question the studies, not his assumptions.

Here is our insight into his, and the conservative mind. Evidence contrary to belief is wrong. Belief trumps reality.

That is why the Don Imus scandal could be dismissed as a non-story because belief in repugnance trumps a firestorm. That is why the Alberto Gonzales imbroglio can be lied about as a non-issue because belief in the Bush administration trumps American law.

Not one week after H*nry again griped about the Attorney General scandal as much ado about nothing the Amarillo Globe-News issued an editorial calling for Gonzales to resign. H*nry was on the wrong side of an issue – again.

As often as Dav* H*nry has been wrong about an issue, calling them wrong, getting his facts wrong, you would think logic would dictate he would lose his credibility, that eventually this sportswriter become editorialist, so long out of his depth, would finally be dismissed.

But here I have erred in my logic. I assumed he began with credibility to lose.