Public knowledge is that which can at least in principle be reliably shared by all open-minded people.
The result isn't Truth with a capital T, but the very existence of modern, technological civilization attests to the effectiveness of the method.
Personal knowledge can be just as firmly held to be true.
Public knowledge makes common discourse possible.
Personal knowledge belongs to me alone, and I have no right to assume that others must share it. Much of the world's mischief derives from the belief that others should embrace what I personally hold to be true.
In a civilized society we rely on secure public knowledge to provide cohesiveness and stability. Within that commonwealth of shared belief we live out our lives in a life-enhancing (or life-depressing) milieu of personal knowledge.
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