POWER OF ONE

THE POWER OF ONE EXAMPLE One man sinned. Therefore mankind is sinful. Is inductive reasoning: it extrapolates from a specific to a general. It may be something likened to the Chicken Little fable about the "sky is falling." It is inductive, thus, illogical . But, in living practice, it is common. In another example, one man attempted to board a commercial aircraft with explosives in his shoes, now millions of people who fly each day must take off their shoes to pass through security screening each day, worldwide . Another man put explosives in his underwear, boarding a plane. He too was caught. Now everyone boarding an airplane is subject to body searches , even strip search, along with personal x-rays of carry on items. All from one example. In truth, no similar assaults on airlines' safety have succeeded, after the prevention measures were adopted . That is great gain to all! Such preventative examples have now convinced me, ironically, that induction may not be so illogical after all, as I was once taught as a college freshman. One example may be a forewarning, which one dare not ignore, at its own peril. This revision to my own thinking now calls to mind a bit of history. During the "Punic War" between Rome and Carthage for commercial supremacy of the Mediterranean Sea, some sailors from Italy were caught in a storm and were carried to Africa, to Libya, just outside of Carthage . There, they were treated hospitably. Their craft repaired, and rendered seaworthy. After they had their full of partying, wine and wassail, they sailed home to Italy; when there, they told the authorities about their Carthage adventures, how storm-tossed they had landed near the African home of Hannibal, the great tormentor of Roman legions and had lived to tell the tale. Hearing this, a Roman armada was outfitted to sail, to invade Africa, Carthage , to force Hannibal back home! It worked! The Carthage Senate was fearful of its own sovereignty and safety, so it recalled Hannibal, its brilliant black general, with his troops, mahouts and war elephants from Italy to home. There at Zama, Hannibal was defeated by Scipoo Africanus, when Hannibal's African allies, the fierce Numidian cavalry switched sides from its African neighbors, Carthage, to aid the Roman invaders' general, ending the war, and making Rome: Mediterranean master of commerce and military. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Zama   So, I was wrong about inductive reasoning, in retrospect, once can be more than enough to require an efficacious response preventing its recurrence or worse, your defeat!