Truth has no owner
January 13, 2023•170 words
I heard a line from a TV episode about a person revealing a truth that is not theirs to reveal. The counter-argument to that is that truth has no owner. This counter-argument struck me deeply. The question is what kind of truths belong to which category.
I have always felt that if someone reveals a truth to me, then it is not my place to reveal it to others. That someone ultimately has priority over revealing (and even not revealing) the truth.
If it were my truth, then it is also in my discretion to reveal it. I believe we are entitled to secrets. It is unclear whether revealing truths will actually set one free. Actually, being set free is extremely vague and there many ways, good or bad, to be set free.
In both cases, I feel that the truth has an owner. They have property rights to it.
What of other truths? Is it useful to have a hierarchy of truths for which we can assign property rights?