“Denial is everywhere. I have come to believe that it’s an intrinsic component of our humanity, an essential survival strategy. Unlike other species, we know that we will die. This knowledge could destroy us, were we unable to blot it out. But, unlike other species, we also know how not to know. We employ this unique ability to suppress our knowledge not just of mortality, but of everything we find uncomfortable, until our survival strategy becomes a threat to our survival.”
Introduction. On Trying To Be Less Wrong. By George Monbiot. Published on monbiot.com, 28th June 2011
I highly recommend you read the whole article, here:
https://www.monbiot.com/about/introduction-on-trying-to-be-less-wrong
It is a beautifully succinct and compelling argument for the importance of speaking truth to power and the nature of knowledge.