the triple filter test

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day, an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, "Do you know what I just learned about your nemesis?"

"Wait," Socrates replied, "Before you talk to me about this person, take a moment to consider what you're about going to share. I call it the triple filter test. The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"

"Well, no," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."

"All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now, let's try the second filter: the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about this person something good?"

"No, on the contrary...," he replied, attempting to expand.

"So," Socrates interrupted, "You want to tell me something bad about this person, but you are not certain it is true. You may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left: the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about this person going to be useful to me?"

"No, not really," he surrendered, "It's just gossip about his personal life."

"Well," concluded Socrates, "If what you want to tell me is neither true, nor good, nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?"