Friday, March 30, 2012
The Mind as an Armed Camp
"There are two kinds of people in the world; those who divide the world into two kinds of people and…." I think we do this because we will do almost anything to avoid thinking, really thinking. Currently the treatment of liberals (or Democrats) and conservatives (or Republicans) is not just tied to differences on an issue, or differences in political thinking, but as some characteristic of human life, and has grown to epidemic proportions. Here is, in my humble opinion, a very lucid article on the simplemindedness and harmfulness of such a position.
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2 comments:
I sent the Sanchez article to a self-described conservative in my office with whom I have an ongoing friendly argument about pretty much everything. I sent him the article as a way of extending the olive branch.
The strategy did not work. My friend strongly disagreed with the article (even though written by a research fellow for the conservative Cato Institute). My friend believes that there is a fundamental difference in -- what? -- sensibility or world-view or psychologicial makeup or something between conservatives and liberals that there is just no getting around (with the implication that liberals suffered from some sort of deficiency).
This is not an indefensible position, however. I've read various pieces about the difference between the liberal and conservative mind. Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt says that there are six foundations of human morality: care, fairness, loyalty, authority, sanctity and liberty. He finds that, while liberty is a constant, as one moves from liberal to conservative, the importance of care and fairness go down while the importance of loyalty, authority and sanctity go up.
So who's right, Sanchez or Haidt?
Or, put another way. Sanchez apparently believes in inherent rationality and free will of humans, Haidt does not, or does on a much more limited scale.
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