The nature of our political conversations are refreshing to me. It is always comforting to identify common ground despite our different views on many topics. That said, the areas where we disagree often confuse me. To be clear, this is not a you thing; this is the situation I find myself in with literally all of my left leaning friends. At the risk of being cliche “it’s not you, it me”.
I reflect often on our conversations and on my own opinions to better understand why it is I seem unable to ‘connect’ more on current topics. The latest video (below) from my favorite 22 year old ’thinker’ offers some insight. It leads me to believe we as a society are locked in debate on minute details of individual issues while failing to discuss the broader macro questions about our society and the trajectory of civilization. Broadly (not just you and me), the debate of individual issues is typically based on facts and data, the more detail the better as it demonstrates a committed grasp of the topic at hand. Yet no matter how detailed, those conversations always feel to me like we are missing something. Don’t even get me started on what is a fact or truth, this makes the challenge infinitely more difficult.
I have come to believe my opinion on various individual issues is not driven by the minute details (or lack of) behind each issue. Don’t get me wrong, I will drill deep on a topic but I do so because it is ’the cost of entry’ to have any kind of discussion with folks. Instead, my opinions are driven by a more macro view of our world. I have often described it as a ’systems’ view and in the last year or so used the word ‘values’ to frame the issues. Trump has used the word ‘common sense’ to describe his campaign. Regardless of how we label it, the suggestion is that the answers to our nation’s issues does not lie in the details but rather understanding the bigger picture.
To be clear, this is not about intelligence; it is about how we choose to frame the issues. It is about understanding there is a hierarchy of conversations. My default way of thinking is to ponder and in many cases choose my point of view based on a more macro view of the world, history, and philosophy.
The only thing I will add is that it is my belief that the elites in our society are happy to have the proletariat be distracted with the minute details of various issues. Furthermore, I argue they promote such behavior so that we will remain blind to the bigger picture; the trajectory of our society. Shadows on the Cave Wall.
I hope you have time to watch the video, I know he can be difficult to endure.
cheers
Barry