Jargon File
Later that same year, the "Jargon File" editors noted lack of knowledge about the term's derivation and the existence of a similar epigram by William James. In 1996, the "Jargon File" entry on Hanlon's Razor noted the existence of a similar quotation in Robert A. Heinlein's novella "Logic of Empire" (1941), with speculation that Hanlon's Razor might be a corruption of "Heinlein's Razor". (The character "Doc" in Heinlein's story described the "devil theory" fallacy, explaining, "You have attributed conditions to villainy that simply result from stupidity.")