"They don't see it and will do whatever it takes to STAY in that silo"
Once people have chosen a side as the side of all that is righteous, they can be fearful of confronting any contrary information.
First, it might shake their moral confidence -- "Could it be that my side is not always with the angels?"
Second, it might shake their …
"They don't see it and will do whatever it takes to STAY in that silo"
Once people have chosen a side as the side of all that is righteous, they can be fearful of confronting any contrary information.
First, it might shake their moral confidence -- "Could it be that my side is not always with the angels?"
Second, it might shake their intellectual confidence -- "Did I let myself be misled?"
Third, beneath the posture of being resolutely on the side of the good, they fear that they cannot defend their position against a challenge.
Fourth, they might fear, deep down, that they are easily swayed: "I thoroughly bought into this narrative without asking a lot of questions. So if I see a different narrative, will I fall for that one too? And then lose my sense of identity?"
Ooo - narrative and identity - the latter is a very powerful construct of the human psyche, especially when the identity gives you membership in a social group.
We humans are social beings. "(W)e share mirror neurons that allow us to match each other’s emotions unconsciously and immediately. We leak emotions to each other. We anticipate and mirror each other’s movements when we’re in sympathy or agreement with one another—when we’re on the same side. And we can mirror each other’s brain activity when we’re engaged in storytelling and listening . . ." (https://www.forbes.com/search/?q=We%20Humans%20Are%20Social%20Beings&sh=59340356279f).
As systems programmers put it decades ago, "It's a feature, not a bug."
It takes guts to stand with an unwelcome opinion! For you, personal conscience is greater than obedience. Isn't that what the American Revolution was about??
"They don't see it and will do whatever it takes to STAY in that silo"
Once people have chosen a side as the side of all that is righteous, they can be fearful of confronting any contrary information.
First, it might shake their moral confidence -- "Could it be that my side is not always with the angels?"
Second, it might shake their intellectual confidence -- "Did I let myself be misled?"
Third, beneath the posture of being resolutely on the side of the good, they fear that they cannot defend their position against a challenge.
Fourth, they might fear, deep down, that they are easily swayed: "I thoroughly bought into this narrative without asking a lot of questions. So if I see a different narrative, will I fall for that one too? And then lose my sense of identity?"
Ooo - narrative and identity - the latter is a very powerful construct of the human psyche, especially when the identity gives you membership in a social group.
We humans are social beings. "(W)e share mirror neurons that allow us to match each other’s emotions unconsciously and immediately. We leak emotions to each other. We anticipate and mirror each other’s movements when we’re in sympathy or agreement with one another—when we’re on the same side. And we can mirror each other’s brain activity when we’re engaged in storytelling and listening . . ." (https://www.forbes.com/search/?q=We%20Humans%20Are%20Social%20Beings&sh=59340356279f).
As systems programmers put it decades ago, "It's a feature, not a bug."
Spot on! It was really hard for me to finally say..."I'm no longer GOP" because I knew it would be crossing a line.
I sort of had to brace myself for my opinion not really being welcome any more.
However...that being said...there was some freedom in being able to say EXACTLY what I wanted to say.
It takes guts to stand with an unwelcome opinion! For you, personal conscience is greater than obedience. Isn't that what the American Revolution was about??