A Brief Reflection on the Law of Identity
I have often heard it said that the law of identity is fruitless---that no conclusions follow from it. This, however, is a byproduct of misidentifying the law. While the expression 'A is A' is useful for focusing one's consciousness and remembering the law of identity, the law of identity should really be expressed in the following way: If (B--> A not = A), then not B. Once we state the law in those terms, it is extremely clear that---in fact---many logical consequences follow from the law of identity and that the law is amazingly useful in proof. Once this superior formulation is understood, the claim that the law of identity is fruitless can easily be put to rest.