to get something out of the way

D

deepcosmos

Senior Member
Korean
Hello, everyone,

“ ... Motivated reasoning must go deep if it even affects the capacity to calculate. Better to get facts and even calculation rules out of the way than to change your point of view and allow facts to disturb your convictions, political identity, and perception of reality. Why would one want to allow that if one is so convinced of being right?”

Regarding underlined parts above I have two questions below. Do you agree with my assumption?;

1. I understand ‘to get something out of the way’ is equal to ‘to do something undesirable or unpleasant in order to be finished with it’.
2. I assume ‘that’ above means ‘to change your point of view’.

Would wait for your valuable reply.

* source (title; Reality Lost: Markets of Attention, Misinformation and Manipulation, Author; Vincent F. Hendricks)
https://books.google.co.kr/books?id=hVptDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA82&lpg=PA82&dq=%22Better+to+get+facts+and+even+calculation+rules+out+of+the+way+than+to+change+your+point+of+view%22&source=bl&ots=4L9D0227au&sig=ACfU3U2wX18F0EKxrdOMH61zXDxfGM4w7w&hl=ko&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjNrdDhgu31AhUKCqYKHQGqAskQ6AF6BAgCEAM#v=onepage&q=%22Better%20to%20get%20facts%20and%20even%20calculation%20rules%20out%20of%20the%20way%20than%20to%20change%20your%20point%20of%20view%22&f=false
 
    • deepcosmos said:
    1. I understand ‘to get something out of the way’ is equal to ‘to do something undesirable or unpleasant in order to be finished with it’.
    Click to expand...
    "To get something out of the way" means "not to consider something" in this context.
    deepcosmos said:
    2. I assume ‘that’ above means ‘to change your point of view’.
    Click to expand...
    "That" refers to this part:
    deepcosmos said:
    to change your point of view and allow facts to disturb your convictions, political identity, and perception of reality.
    Click to expand...
     
    grassy said:
    "To get something out of the way" means "not to consider something" in this context.

    "That" refers to this part:
    Click to expand...
    Hi, grassy, appreciate yours, which is much different with me about "to get something out of the way".
    Let's wait for others' comments.
     
    sound shift said:
    In effect, yes, because here the meaning is "put facts and calculation rules to one side".
    Click to expand...
    Hello, sound shift, thanks yours. Since I assume the author’s opinion is for ‘facts and even calculation rules’ but against ‘motivated reasoning’, then isn’t it natural that the stress should fall into the ‘facts and even calculation rules’? And isn't it possible to interpret ‘to get something out of the way’ as ‘to do something undesirable or unpleasant in order to be finished with it“ with following usage, which has been quoted from ’The free dictionary’?;

    * I volunteered to go first so that I could get my presentation out of the way.
    https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/get+out+of+the+way
     
    The sentence in question explains how people who are guided by motivated reasoning bend the facts and calculation rules in order to hold on to their point of view. The sentence doesn't explain the author's position.
     
    grassy said:
    The sentence in question explains how people who are guided by motivated reasoning bend the facts and calculation rules in order to hold on to their point of view. The sentence doesn't explain the author's position.
    Click to expand...
    Then can I paraphrase this sentence, "According to people who are guided by motivated reasoning, it's better to put 'facts and even calculation rules' to one side than to change ... "?
     
    "... it's better to put 'facts and even calculation rules' to one side than to change ... ":tick:

    I don't think you can extract "According to people who are guided by motivated reasoning..." from the original sentence.
     
    cidertree said:
    "... it's better to put 'facts and even calculation rules' to one side than to change ... ":tick:

    I don't think you can extract "According to people who are guided by motivated reasoning..." from the original sentence.
    Click to expand...
    Hi, cidertree, would you paraphrase the sentence with easier words in your way?
     
    "Motivated reasoning must go deep if it even affects the capacity to calculate."?
    Perhaps:
    "Motivated reasoning must be deeply ingrained if it even affects the capacity to calculate."
     
    Better to get facts

    Does this mean, "It's better to get facts"?

    Or, maybe, "It's better than to get facts"?
     
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