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Monday, January 28, 2013
Question of The Week: Why Are Liberals So Preachy?
I'm a liberal. I'm a super "make Dennis Kucinich feel uncomfortable" lefty. More accurately, I am a Democratic Socialist, but for the benefit of our right-wing friends (some of whom have actually told me that voting for Obama was a form of child abuse) that don't understand, I'm a lefty. Something I've noticed since becoming more politically active and aware is that I've become quite preachy about liberalism and politics in general.
This is not to say that there isn't preachiness on the conservative right (Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter-anyone?) but I've noticed that the left has become quite vocal of late.
In truth, we're not preachy, it just sounds and feels that way. There comes a point in every debate where one side feels unheard and misinterpreted and, armed with a plethora of facts, starts getting more vocal. Sometimes in the cacophony of idealogues that voice starts to sound (and feel) pleading and preachy. I don't know how often I've screamed at the telly (or Facebook) at some right winger in the bubble spouting demonstrably untrue diatribes. (Bill O'Reilly makes my baby cry.)
I think part of our (me and my liberal brethren) problem is that we abhor the lies and deceit. I think we are amazed and saddened at how many people are staunch in their hatred for the President that they are willing to believe any swill slung on Fox "News" as canon. For me personally, I know that I feel like sobbing that people choose to believe the lies, no matter how outlandish, without a scintilla of critical thinking or research. The voluntary ignorance in this country is astounding and depressing. Moreover, I am even more saddened, and frightened, when I see people when faced with actual facts, claim conspiracy and cover-up. We used to send those people to hospitals for treatment, now we give them cable news shows.
Every liberal I know seems to have that Uncle Joe (or in my case, half a family of them) that no matter what you say, no matter how many facts you can present still thinks that President Obama is a socialist Muslim born in Kenya who is coming to take his guns and put him on a death panel. And unfortunately for us libs, we can't help but feed the trolls. We know facts (and reality) is on our side. So we keep at it, trying to chip away at the demagoguery and with each failure we get more excited and louder like that kid in class with his hand up "Ooh ooh, Pick me! Pick me! I know the answer!"
Liberals have become that annoying kid everyone hates because they seem to know it all. People hate a know-it-all, and they especially hate a know-it-all who can't shut up about all they know. Not that anyone is really listening. We're either preaching to the converted or trying to sell to those who think we're peddling snake oil. In being preachy, we lose the capital and authority that we wish to gain with all our facts and reality.
So what's a liberal to do? First, pick your battles. I personally have the most difficult time with this because when I see stupid, I feel the need to fix it. I'm a helper, and I'm a teacher at heart so at my core I have a need to correct people in general. But I need to realize far sooner than I do when the battle is lost. This is another issue for liberals. Because we have those facts, because we know we are right, we can't let go even when the argument is pointless. To quote Kenny Rogers "Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, and know when to run." In poker and politics, this rings true; but that doesn't mean you can't play.
Second, spouting facts and figures and saying "you're wrong" etc will get you nowhere but shut down. No one likes being told they are wrong, or stupid, or both. Unfortunately, most liberals I know do this, myself included. Those facts and figures and reality make us feel superior and we abuse them. Rather than bombarding someone with the information, try to get them to think critically about the situation.
For example, I have family that insists President Obama is a Muslim Kenyan who is not eligible for the presidency. I've asked them "So, which do you think it is then-that there is a vast governmental conspiracy in the FBI to cover up President Obama's heritage, that the President Bush-appointed FBI is patently inept in their ability to vet a Presidential candidate's eligibility, or that President Obama is a Christian man (not that his religion has anything to do with the office of President or any other public office) who was born in Hawai'i?" I haven't actually changed anyone's mind doing this (although many of my family seem to love the conspiracy and inept angles,) but I certainly feel less defeated when I use this approach and the person comes to their same conclusion (especially when you bring in the argument that supposes that President Obama can time-travel and control the weather.) At that point you just walk away knowing you can't sway a true-believer.
Ultimately, if liberals are to be taken seriously and less preachy, we need to start a grass-roots movement to educate the populace. I'm not talking politically, I'm talking about basic education. We are at this impasse politically and socially because our education system is frankly, shit. Our children are not taught how to think critically, they are not taught to question authority and think for themselves. They are taught to learm the facts for the test: swallow what we tell you is the truth, but take no time or energy to digest that information, just move to the next spoon-feeding of facts.
When the populace is uneducated they are easily governed by fear and lies. It's time we start educating our populace, and by extension, our electorate. What we need is comprehensive education funding and reform.
On the world stage, in terms of education, the United States is failing. Our literacy rate is abysmal. Costa Rica has a 99% literacy rate. Shouldn't this be a goal for us? The U.S. is ranked 17th in the world in overall education. We're not even in the top 10. In 2010, we ranked 25th of 34 in math, and we haven't done much better in the past 2 years. Why? Over the past at least 30 years, we have seen education systematically defunded, to say nothing of the glorious failure that is "No Child Left Behind." Why is it that our country feels the best way to educate its populace is to give education less resources?
So, liberals unite. If you want to be seen as less preachy, if you want people to value facts over opinions, if you want an informed electorate, we need to educate the electorate. All other issues will fall into place once the people are educated and able to think critically.
“Information is the currency of democracy.”
― Thomas Jefferson
“Educate and inform the whole mass of the people...they are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.”
― Thomas Jefferson
“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.”
― Thomas Jefferson
“No matter how big the lie, repeat it often enough and the masses will regard it as the truth.”
― John F. Kennedy
“It is always a much easier task to educate uneducated people than to re-educate the mis-educated.”
― Herbert M. Shelton
I'm a liberal. I'm a super "make Dennis Kucinich feel uncomfortable" lefty. More accurately, I am a Democratic Socialist, but for the benefit of our right-wing friends (some of whom have actually told me that voting for Obama was a form of child abuse) that don't understand, I'm a lefty. Something I've noticed since becoming more politically active and aware is that I've become quite preachy about liberalism and politics in general.
This is not to say that there isn't preachiness on the conservative right (Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter-anyone?) but I've noticed that the left has become quite vocal of late.
In truth, we're not preachy, it just sounds and feels that way. There comes a point in every debate where one side feels unheard and misinterpreted and, armed with a plethora of facts, starts getting more vocal. Sometimes in the cacophony of idealogues that voice starts to sound (and feel) pleading and preachy. I don't know how often I've screamed at the telly (or Facebook) at some right winger in the bubble spouting demonstrably untrue diatribes. (Bill O'Reilly makes my baby cry.)
I think part of our (me and my liberal brethren) problem is that we abhor the lies and deceit. I think we are amazed and saddened at how many people are staunch in their hatred for the President that they are willing to believe any swill slung on Fox "News" as canon. For me personally, I know that I feel like sobbing that people choose to believe the lies, no matter how outlandish, without a scintilla of critical thinking or research. The voluntary ignorance in this country is astounding and depressing. Moreover, I am even more saddened, and frightened, when I see people when faced with actual facts, claim conspiracy and cover-up. We used to send those people to hospitals for treatment, now we give them cable news shows.
Every liberal I know seems to have that Uncle Joe (or in my case, half a family of them) that no matter what you say, no matter how many facts you can present still thinks that President Obama is a socialist Muslim born in Kenya who is coming to take his guns and put him on a death panel. And unfortunately for us libs, we can't help but feed the trolls. We know facts (and reality) is on our side. So we keep at it, trying to chip away at the demagoguery and with each failure we get more excited and louder like that kid in class with his hand up "Ooh ooh, Pick me! Pick me! I know the answer!"
Liberals have become that annoying kid everyone hates because they seem to know it all. People hate a know-it-all, and they especially hate a know-it-all who can't shut up about all they know. Not that anyone is really listening. We're either preaching to the converted or trying to sell to those who think we're peddling snake oil. In being preachy, we lose the capital and authority that we wish to gain with all our facts and reality.
So what's a liberal to do? First, pick your battles. I personally have the most difficult time with this because when I see stupid, I feel the need to fix it. I'm a helper, and I'm a teacher at heart so at my core I have a need to correct people in general. But I need to realize far sooner than I do when the battle is lost. This is another issue for liberals. Because we have those facts, because we know we are right, we can't let go even when the argument is pointless. To quote Kenny Rogers "Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, and know when to run." In poker and politics, this rings true; but that doesn't mean you can't play.
Second, spouting facts and figures and saying "you're wrong" etc will get you nowhere but shut down. No one likes being told they are wrong, or stupid, or both. Unfortunately, most liberals I know do this, myself included. Those facts and figures and reality make us feel superior and we abuse them. Rather than bombarding someone with the information, try to get them to think critically about the situation.
For example, I have family that insists President Obama is a Muslim Kenyan who is not eligible for the presidency. I've asked them "So, which do you think it is then-that there is a vast governmental conspiracy in the FBI to cover up President Obama's heritage, that the President Bush-appointed FBI is patently inept in their ability to vet a Presidential candidate's eligibility, or that President Obama is a Christian man (not that his religion has anything to do with the office of President or any other public office) who was born in Hawai'i?" I haven't actually changed anyone's mind doing this (although many of my family seem to love the conspiracy and inept angles,) but I certainly feel less defeated when I use this approach and the person comes to their same conclusion (especially when you bring in the argument that supposes that President Obama can time-travel and control the weather.) At that point you just walk away knowing you can't sway a true-believer.
Ultimately, if liberals are to be taken seriously and less preachy, we need to start a grass-roots movement to educate the populace. I'm not talking politically, I'm talking about basic education. We are at this impasse politically and socially because our education system is frankly, shit. Our children are not taught how to think critically, they are not taught to question authority and think for themselves. They are taught to learm the facts for the test: swallow what we tell you is the truth, but take no time or energy to digest that information, just move to the next spoon-feeding of facts.
When the populace is uneducated they are easily governed by fear and lies. It's time we start educating our populace, and by extension, our electorate. What we need is comprehensive education funding and reform.
On the world stage, in terms of education, the United States is failing. Our literacy rate is abysmal. Costa Rica has a 99% literacy rate. Shouldn't this be a goal for us? The U.S. is ranked 17th in the world in overall education. We're not even in the top 10. In 2010, we ranked 25th of 34 in math, and we haven't done much better in the past 2 years. Why? Over the past at least 30 years, we have seen education systematically defunded, to say nothing of the glorious failure that is "No Child Left Behind." Why is it that our country feels the best way to educate its populace is to give education less resources?
So, liberals unite. If you want to be seen as less preachy, if you want people to value facts over opinions, if you want an informed electorate, we need to educate the electorate. All other issues will fall into place once the people are educated and able to think critically.
“Information is the currency of democracy.”
― Thomas Jefferson
“Educate and inform the whole mass of the people...they are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.”
― Thomas Jefferson
“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.”
― Thomas Jefferson
“No matter how big the lie, repeat it often enough and the masses will regard it as the truth.”
― John F. Kennedy
“It is always a much easier task to educate uneducated people than to re-educate the mis-educated.”
― Herbert M. Shelton
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1 comments:
I'm not a Liberal or Conservative, but people call you guys "Holyish" and "preachy" because sometimes you guys end up saying shit that we can't stop agreeing with but cannot argue against.
It's like, (example) if someone talks about voting for gay marriage, if Centrist tells his friend Liberal that if a Conservative thinks that Homosexuality is wrong then it's okay and they can vote against/opposive to it, then Liberal just says something like "But, then homosexuals can't marry each other, dude, what.."
And that's right, and Centrist can't disagree or argue against it, he KNOWS that's the problem for some people, so now Centrist get's kind of "shut down".
That's what some people dislike from SOME liberals, the liberals who does what i'm talking about.
That's acting Holy, it's lame, it's like it's sorta ending a discussion, you "have" to agree with that "but since the opposers of gay marriage are voting against homosexuality then gays have trouble getting married!!".
WE. KNOW.
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