Sure, it's wrong to shoot the messenger. But sometimes the messenger is wrong.
I think that real solutions to complex problems only arise from analysis and thinking carefully. They don't come from application of simple heuristics.
1. the only way a messanger is wrong is if they send the wrong message. Hence the adage.
2. It's all an interpretation of a complex situation, it may not be "right", but it's nearly impossible to find the objective truth. In the abscence of truth, no subjective take can truly be "wrong".
>I think that real solutions to complex problems only arise from analysis and thinking carefully.
And the fatalism comes from the realization that modern societies in an alarming number of sectors simply aren't even trying to solve the problem. they are playing a prisoners dilemma and they are more than happy to defect.
> the only way a messanger is wrong is if they send the wrong message.
Well, if a messenger carries a message that he or she knows or should know is incorrect, illegal, or lacks crucial context or qualification, there's a problem there.
The message might be "correct" in that it is an accurate word-for-word transmission of what the message's author said, but the message could still "wrong" in other senses of the word.
Sometimes we just want accurate transmission of content, e.g., with a phone call. In other contexts (scientific, legal, journalistic, political) we expect broadcasters of messages to exercise some responsibility over what and how they say things.
> no subjective take can truly be "wrong"
No one wants to live in a world where everyone believes this. Have you ever been mugged? I have. Being tackled and having my wallet stolen was "truly wrong." I am not interested in political or sociological arguments to the contrary.
I think that real solutions to complex problems only arise from analysis and thinking carefully. They don't come from application of simple heuristics.