Things often not what they seem: Recent rash of stories only fuels innate trend to jump to conclusions

We always want to assume the worst. It’s more fun.
That is, as humans we suffer from an inherent weakness to jump to conclusions.
Some will say the news media only fans the flames until they leap into a bonfire of guilt.
Others, point to today’s culture of portraying anything that doesn’t look like or think like them as a bogeyman.
One would like to think after a bad experience resulting from jumping to conclusions many are at least slower to pile-on. But one would be wrong.
Despite perhaps our nation’s most exemplary and oldest principle, the presumption of innocent until proven guilty, it’s still a tough sale in most cases.
Put simply, “My mind is made up. So don’t be confusing me with facts.”
In recent weeks, several cases of this innate tendency have embarrassed any number of people.
In one case last week, a foreign visitor initially faced a charge of  attempted child abduction that was  reduced to battery and then dropped altogether.
At press time, it appeared the mother of the child, who pulled a gun on the man at a Huntington mall, will be charged with falsely reporting an emergency incident.
In another case last week, a purported 14-year-old teenager claimed to be a boy who was sent into hiding by his mother in 2011 shortly after she took her own life.
Following DNA testing and further investigation, that teenager turned out to be a 23-year-old man who was released from jail a month ago.
Then there was the hoax perpetuated by an actor in Chicago, who claimed he was beaten by two men in a racist and homophobic attack.
Turns out there was never an attack and authorities claim he paid for and staged the incident to generate publicity.
Later, 16 counts of disorderly conduct were oddly dropped against him after forfeiting a $10,000 bond and  16 hours of community service.
Now,  authorities are suing him for more than $130,000 to cover the cost of the investigation.
As a rule, we rely heavily on logic and reasoning. But we only report what happened, not our suppositions or commentary.
We do opine on things on this page, but  yet strive to not provide empty opinions in a rush to judgment about issues or incidents.
Our point is, though it’s innately human, we should not judge anyone or jump to conclusions about anything, until we get the full story.
Indeed,  we must give due consideration of the actual facts and the circumstances, first. And that can be work.