Maggie's Farm

In fact, causation is an inference that depends on correlation.

Consider a simple example: You push a lever and a gumdrop comes out. You propose the hypothesis that pushing the lever causes the gumdrop to come out. You do it a bunch of times and the gumdrop keeps coming out, so the correlation supports the proposed cause. A falsification would be push the lever and no gumdrop comes out, or don't push the lever and no gumdrop comes out. But falsification itself requires observations of patterns—that is, correlations. Repeated patterns of correlation, experimental control, and elimination of competing explanations, can reasonably justify causal inference. But it's still an inference.

Causation has been a subject of considerable debate, from Aristotle to Hume to the wrinkles of quantum theory. Menton didn't consider "alternative hypotheses or potentially conflicting evidence" about the nature of causation, because his purpose is polemics. Menton was not just wrong, but used his wrongness to cast aspersions.

OneGuy: 1. No one should testify against themselves. Always take the 5th and get a lawyer.

Get a lawyer when in doubt, but if no one ever talked to the law enforcement, then many crimes would be unsolved or missolved, including when you are the victim.

OneGuy: 2. No government employee, elected official, volunteer, contractor, etc. should ever be allowed to take the 5th and keep their job too.

That is already the rule, as long as the testimony concerns the employee's official duties. However, because the testimony is compelled by the government, it can't then be used as evidence in a criminal proceeding against the employee. See Garrity v. New Jersey (1967).