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From: John H
This is a really interesting short article with a long list of following comments (it is altogether long – 22 pages). Fortunately it can be read piecemeal but it is something that many of us should find to be useful. Many of the comments are particularly relevant to the current conversational/ argumentative milieu. I strongly encourage you to take a look, regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.
John
Article: Reader Coping Strategies for Engaging with Committed.
The article byYves Smith begins:
An oft-repeated bit of advice in America is never to talk about religion or politics. Sadly, the
reason is that Americans are dreadful at talking across political lines. When I lived in Australia
in the early 2000s and adopted a pub, by contrast, I found the locals to be eager to debate the
topics of the day yet remain civil about it. That may be because Australians in generally have
mastered the art of being confrontational by lacing it with humor and/or self-deprecation.
By contrast, Americans, who pretend to fetishize individualism, are conformists. Dissent is not
well tolerated at work or social spheres. And its only gotten worse as media fragmentation and
political strategies based on hitting voter hot buttons means that many people are deeply invested
in their political views, whether they are well founded or not. Punitive unfriending and other
forms of ostracism have become a new normal.
The article byYves Smith begins:
An oft-repeated bit of advice in America is never to talk about religion or politics. Sadly, the
reason is that Americans are dreadful at talking across political lines. When I lived in Australia
in the early 2000s and adopted a pub, by contrast, I found the locals to be eager to debate the
topics of the day yet remain civil about it. That may be because Australians in generally have
mastered the art of being confrontational by lacing it with humor and/or self-deprecation.
By contrast, Americans, who pretend to fetishize individualism, are conformists. Dissent is not
well tolerated at work or social spheres. And its only gotten worse as media fragmentation and
political strategies based on hitting voter hot buttons means that many people are deeply invested
in their political views, whether they are well founded or not. Punitive unfriending and other
forms of ostracism have become a new normal.
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