Facts

"[XYZ] actually said 'Facts can be debated.' Think about that for a moment!" With these words, a meme in current circulation takes to task a public statement by a public figure.  So, let's do “think about that for a moment.”  Are facts debatable?

4 January 2015 History is not a collection of raw facts we simply look up and copy down. Nor can we peel away the layers of time to find the plain truth revealed. ...

26 December 2014 Jack Webb, the famed Dragnet detective, consistently called for “Just the facts, Ma’am, just the facts.” That stance, a wise one for detectives, has its counterpart among historical researchers who recognize the difference between documented “facts,” speculation, and interpretation.

29 August 2014 Contrary to the old cliché, facts do not speak for themselves. Facts are chameleons whose shape and color reflect their handlers. A beginning researcher and a skilled one can read the same information in a record and draw two separate conclusions, based upon ...

20 February 2014 History researchers do not discover facts. We do not record facts. We do not prove facts. There is no way that we can determine the actual facts about past generations and centuries. ...