This is a topic that I have been deep into for decades.
When asked why I spend any time posting on a left leaning Substack or left news source comment board, I say "Not to change any leftist mind because their minds are corrupted beyond repair. I am writing to provide the missing facts and contrasting views for the few that are reading not having been completely indoctrinated."
I think it was Reagan that said, "It is not that our liberal friends are ignorant; it is that they know so much that just isn't so."
I have lived in a liberal college town for over 45 years. Early on I tried like hell to engage. I am always seeking to fill my own blind-spots and eliminate my biases that might be in error because of missing information and perspectives. I had been worried that my view that these highly academic-credentialled people had lobsters crawling out of their ears when they expressed their views was MY PROBLEM for not understanding enough. I worked at this for years. It included participating in city commissions, meeting leading citizens for coffee, lunch and a beer after work. I got to be close with a lot of people that are hard core liberals.
What I determined in the end is that my liberal friends are a different species of human animal with respect to cognitive wiring. What I concluded is that critical thinking is a circle where information is collected, analyzed and processed... including all the criteria including consequences, and a rational and pragmatic cost-benefit choice derives. Liberals short-circuit that process into a half circle where they stop and decide based on how they feel about the choice. Their feelings overwhelm the pragmatic considerations and the logical consequences. Frankly, it is childish behavior "I WANT THAT CANDY NOW!".
Haidt covered this. His testing from all over the world concluded that liberals are a different cognitive species. They operate almost exclusively on the moral filter of care/harm. And when we accept that egoism is the ubiquitous motivation of all human animals, the typical liberal is prioritizing choice over THEIR harm and care. I can see it... most of the liberals I know are not happy people. They are unsatisfied with something about their life. Their career. Their family. Their looks. Their (fill in the blanks). They are resentful and have these gaps in their emotional and psychological health. This is proved with the much higher diagnosis of mental and emotional health issues with liberals. This makes them resentful of others they see as being happier. They are mean, nasty, cynical, resentful and seek retribution as causing their misery... when their misery is generally from their own choices and behaviors.
The way I look at them... they are like adult-aged children seeking control over others. They never fully developed to well-functioning adult state. But they stayed in school longer and got credentials and certifications and went out and took over our institutions. So, we have these incapable and incompetent "smart people" running the world. It is beyond dangerous.
We will never move their needle with logical arguments. However, there is a secret to winning as their emotions can be so easily tweaked. The method is to jack them to high emotional turmoil and then periodically show how much you care for them and want to reduce the harm being caused them. By jacking them like Trump does they show their crazy. That is good to help prevent their absurd ideas from being mainstreamed as the electorate sees the crazy. Then by giving them care attention, it knocks them off guard. They live off the energy of rage and resentment and when you say the soothing words the crave it stops their engine for a while... and during that bit of time might cause them some self-reflection.
Excellent comment, thanks Frank. I appreciate and share your belief in the cognition differences between conservatives and liberals, because I've experienced it so often. The "feelings" short-circuit is undeniable. I might offer an alternate ray of hope for getting someone to complete the cognitive circle. Personally it was life experience, and what happened when I realized that my wishes were childish, and did not work in the real world. I had a big wake up on 9/11 when I saw many Americans (bizarrely) blaming the United States for the Islamic attack on our country. The facts didn't matter, some of my friends felt that if we had just been "nicer," then they wouldn't have Kamikazied those civilian airliners. Admittedly this sort of waking up to reality is fairly rare, increasingly so in today's social media world.
This is a topic that I have been deep into for decades.
When asked why I spend any time posting on a left leaning Substack or left news source comment board, I say "Not to change any leftist mind because their minds are corrupted beyond repair. I am writing to provide the missing facts and contrasting views for the few that are reading not having been completely indoctrinated."
I think it was Reagan that said, "It is not that our liberal friends are ignorant; it is that they know so much that just isn't so."
I have lived in a liberal college town for over 45 years. Early on I tried like hell to engage. I am always seeking to fill my own blind-spots and eliminate my biases that might be in error because of missing information and perspectives. I had been worried that my view that these highly academic-credentialled people had lobsters crawling out of their ears when they expressed their views was MY PROBLEM for not understanding enough. I worked at this for years. It included participating in city commissions, meeting leading citizens for coffee, lunch and a beer after work. I got to be close with a lot of people that are hard core liberals.
What I determined in the end is that my liberal friends are a different species of human animal with respect to cognitive wiring. What I concluded is that critical thinking is a circle where information is collected, analyzed and processed... including all the criteria including consequences, and a rational and pragmatic cost-benefit choice derives. Liberals short-circuit that process into a half circle where they stop and decide based on how they feel about the choice. Their feelings overwhelm the pragmatic considerations and the logical consequences. Frankly, it is childish behavior "I WANT THAT CANDY NOW!".
Haidt covered this. His testing from all over the world concluded that liberals are a different cognitive species. They operate almost exclusively on the moral filter of care/harm. And when we accept that egoism is the ubiquitous motivation of all human animals, the typical liberal is prioritizing choice over THEIR harm and care. I can see it... most of the liberals I know are not happy people. They are unsatisfied with something about their life. Their career. Their family. Their looks. Their (fill in the blanks). They are resentful and have these gaps in their emotional and psychological health. This is proved with the much higher diagnosis of mental and emotional health issues with liberals. This makes them resentful of others they see as being happier. They are mean, nasty, cynical, resentful and seek retribution as causing their misery... when their misery is generally from their own choices and behaviors.
The way I look at them... they are like adult-aged children seeking control over others. They never fully developed to well-functioning adult state. But they stayed in school longer and got credentials and certifications and went out and took over our institutions. So, we have these incapable and incompetent "smart people" running the world. It is beyond dangerous.
We will never move their needle with logical arguments. However, there is a secret to winning as their emotions can be so easily tweaked. The method is to jack them to high emotional turmoil and then periodically show how much you care for them and want to reduce the harm being caused them. By jacking them like Trump does they show their crazy. That is good to help prevent their absurd ideas from being mainstreamed as the electorate sees the crazy. Then by giving them care attention, it knocks them off guard. They live off the energy of rage and resentment and when you say the soothing words the crave it stops their engine for a while... and during that bit of time might cause them some self-reflection.
Excellent comment, thanks Frank. I appreciate and share your belief in the cognition differences between conservatives and liberals, because I've experienced it so often. The "feelings" short-circuit is undeniable. I might offer an alternate ray of hope for getting someone to complete the cognitive circle. Personally it was life experience, and what happened when I realized that my wishes were childish, and did not work in the real world. I had a big wake up on 9/11 when I saw many Americans (bizarrely) blaming the United States for the Islamic attack on our country. The facts didn't matter, some of my friends felt that if we had just been "nicer," then they wouldn't have Kamikazied those civilian airliners. Admittedly this sort of waking up to reality is fairly rare, increasingly so in today's social media world.