Hedging against a non-existent but metaphysically imaginable risk: an evolution
When must we act?
1) If the risk is be imaginable in theory, then nevertheless it must be substantiated in practice:
"The issue of fact must be 'genuine'. . . . When the moving party has carried its burden . . . its opponent must do more than simply show that there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts."
(March 1986)
2) If the risk is imaginable in theory and minimally substantiated in practice, then nevertheless it shall be taken to be absolutely certain:
"Even if there's just a 1 percent chance of the unimaginable coming true, act as if it's a certainty."
3) If the risk is totally unsubstantiated in practice but even minimally theorizable by the highly imaginative, then nevertheless it must be taken to be absolutely certain, hidden in the most nefarious way, and we all must act accordingly.
"[The] only purported evidence that these issues had any potential effect . . . was, quite simply, sheer speculation. . . . failed to present evidence, as opposed to speculation, that any such breach affected the . . . results."
posted by TiR at 7:01 AM
