"The term "Counterfactual" is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as contrary to the facts.[2] A counterfactual thought occurs when a person modifies a factual prior event and then assesses the consequences of that change.[3] A person may imagine how an outcome could have turned out differently, if the antecedents that led to that event were different. For example, a person may reflect upon how a car accident could have turned out by imagining how some of the factors could have been different, for example, If only I hadn't been speeding...."
The forms the article mentions are like those "if" statements.
>That's not a counterfactual, it's a fact.
That's because there's a one-way casual relationship there. Not the case with TFA examples.
Wikipedia doesn't seem to agree with you:
"The term "Counterfactual" is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as contrary to the facts.[2] A counterfactual thought occurs when a person modifies a factual prior event and then assesses the consequences of that change.[3] A person may imagine how an outcome could have turned out differently, if the antecedents that led to that event were different. For example, a person may reflect upon how a car accident could have turned out by imagining how some of the factors could have been different, for example, If only I hadn't been speeding...."
The forms the article mentions are like those "if" statements.
>That's not a counterfactual, it's a fact.
That's because there's a one-way casual relationship there. Not the case with TFA examples.