Land of Ideology and Tribalism: Are You Caught in the Crossfire?

Today, everyone has an opinion- most likely incredibly strong ones- some so strong they’ve seemed to corner the market on the public discourse. I’m not so sure I agree with all of them. Maybe you don’t either ? What used to be a colorful spectrum of opinions (good, bad and sometimes ugly ) now feels to me more akin to a black & white movie taking place in some prison camp in communist Eastern Europe. Rigid ideology and tribalism is the flavor of the day.

We have two sides and a desolate No Man’s Land outside of these camps that used to be occupied by a large swath of people. Sadly, everything is divided into binaries which deny people of their natural complexities. We don’t allow space for nuance anymore which really hollows out the discourse making it much less vibrant or dynamic. Leaving us stuck with this nasty case of dogmatism that discourages people from acting like themselves. That’s always one of the things that confuses me, people are always going to think whatever they’re going to think regardless of if you approve or not. Why not deal with the truth?

This looks even more silly when you remember it’s more important to ask and learn than to simply conform to ideas, ideals or values without proper debate. To paraphrase enlightenment philosopher John Stuart Mill: better to organize your life around living truths- ideas you’ve fully considered, debated and fleshed out- than dead dogma- empty platitudes and group think. Ideals and values become meaningless when they get rubber stamped onto us- no matter how good the intention. People need to be encouraged to ask questions, make mistakes and truly learn. That’s how you get progress. That’s how you move the needle. Thousands of years of history would agree.

A lot of people are afraid to share what’s on their mind- which I don’t like. I don’t have to agree with you or like what you have to say- I might even debate you fiercely- but I damn well will defend your right to say it. Also, I’m very curious to what you’re truly thinking. I want to understand.

For many battle-lines have been drawn. Tribes have been formed. People are ready to hate tweet for hours or share a snarky Instagram story designed to make you disgusted of someone or something. That’s not the answer, even if it feels great in the moment. This is shallow, meaningless and produces no tangible results. It actually just makes thing worse.

In the end, reality should be valued above all else. This means sometimes we’re going to have to come together and hammer out issues through constructive disagreement. Its okay to sometimes feel discomfort in a discussion. That’s called being an adult. Even if we don’t agree, I want you to tell me exactly what you’re thinking. I’ll do the same. We’ll go from there. It’s the ultimate form of respect. Sadly if you do that nowadays you might find yourself caught between a rock and a hard place.

If you can show me someone who has all the answers, I’ll show you my pet leprechaun & his pot of gold (Don’t tell PETA). I don’t care what team you’re on, I care more about reality. We all should all care more about reality. If you can’t call a spade a spade, you essentially have nothing. The jokes on you, whether you realize it or not. It’s the only way we are going to really solve issues and make progress in this complex world.

The truth is you should always have an open mind. You should always entertain new ideas, allow people space to share their views and debate even your most strongly held beliefs. It’s good mental exercise. The best ideas always win and it prevents the bad ideas from festering while miraculously keeping us all ( a little more) honest. Sometimes you even learn something- go figure!

I consider myself a humanist; I love people, I believe in people. That’s full spectrum too; good, bad and ugly. Trying to understand different kinds of people is how I relate to the world. People are capable of great things and not so great but the beauty lies in the fact its up to the individual. Even though it might not feel like it now, we have more in common than we remember. I’d like to remind people of that. I guess that’s the inspiration for this thing- whatever it is.

Maybe you agree? Maybe we can thaw out this new Cold War a little & make the world marginally less looney in the process.

For that- I’ll proudly stake my flag in NO MAN’S LAND.

What say you?