Ignorance is usually at the root of most problems. Philosophy falls into two camps when it comes to how the supreme moral good is derived, or more importantly cognitive abilities and the purpose of man. Plato and those that follow his a priori reasoning conclude that it stems from idealism and form. That truth is inherited outside the realm of materialism. Aristotle and those that favor his naturalist or materialist arguments that truth comes from the physical world. Both agree though that the way for man to reach his potential and serve his purpose was to use their cognitive abilities, reason, act on what is right and fulfill their biological needs. Reasoning and moral virtue allow us to find the mean between extremes and keep our impulses in check for the common good. That being said, it is very difficult to do this when many things espoused as fact are in fact not true; or when the general populace is more concerned about iPods and new shoes than using their brains. Both sides in the philosophical debate maintain that happiness is the goal, and that man does two basic things, reason and live. That is, we use our minds and sustain our biological needs, these two things with honesty and truth as a guide will make us happy. Until then political unrest and many other negative aspects of life will be prevalent.