I like to step back.
Stepping back allows you to clear your mind, take the horse blinders off, but most importantly allows you to see the situation for what it truly is.
For example, the eternal debate of Austrian vs. Keynesian economics. The front lines of this battle are between economic intellectual giants on both sides of the debate. Krugman, Reich, Williams, Sowell, you name it, heavy hitters from prestigious institutions of government and academia tender increasingly complex and researched arguments. It's like the Battle of Somme being waged, slugging it out, with no clear winner.
But what if instead of burrowing your head further into No Man's Land you instead, pull back, hop on a plane and take a look at the debate from a completely different, simpler, and admittedly, less-intellectual perspective?
You'd soon realize the debate is about whether the government knows what's best for the economy and has the right to intervene or whether it should be left up to the people.
The answer, if you're intellectually honest, is simply clear.
Global warming is another example. The pro-global warmists will through up a chart and claim we're all going to drown in 500 days, the anti-global warmists will show new data debunking said claims and the latest global warming models. Sheeple will believe who they choose to. Whoever is right, however, if you step back and look at it with different eyes you'll realize it is much more likely this is just the latest political ruse by socialists posing as caring "environmentalists" to get more of other people's money. But you can't come to that realization if you're steeped in the religious indoctrination, or in the throes of debunking it.
So a third "Step Back" observation dawned on me and its ramifications are quite depressing. And that is:
How f*cking hard is it to sell the platform of freedom to people?
Step back and think about this.
Those evil,
meanie,
bigotted,
racist,
fascist,
baby seal clubbing,
grandma tripping
Republicans want basically one simple thing:
Lower taxes.
And not just lower taxes for "the rich," but lower taxes for everyone.
Yes, duly noted, a faction within the Republican party is against abortion. Thank you leftists, we got the memo. But aside from that overly beaten accusation of a drum, their overall political product is freedom.
Now you would think, given logic and reason, the American people would in general want freedom. You would think, given the history of humans, where the vast majority of them were oppressed by the government, they would want LESS government and MORE individualism.
You would think.
The irony is, however, that it's damn well near impossible to sell freedom to the American people.
The question is why, and when you step back, clear your eyes, and think about it, the answer is quite scary.
Admittedly, part of the reason American's are so resilient to freedom is that the Republicans are the worst salesmen in the world for it. But although poor salesmanship is in part to blame, the real reason is that the American people have been brainwashed to think against their own, long term self interests.
This may sound conspiratorial, but it is not. This is only the natural consequence of a leftist political party that uses a public school system and a leftist media to convince people to;
1. Not think critically
2. Never develop the capacity for delay gratification
3. Never learn about basic personal budgeting and financial planning (you ever see this in schools?)
4. Hate and envy other, more successful groups of people, that they should be emulating instead
5. Self-rationalize why they are entitled to said successful people's lives in the form of their wealth
Of course, this scam is obvious to even the part-time observer of politics. But what is truly scary is how effective it is. It's so effective, and the people's brain's so dumbed down and impaired, they not only can't identify this ruse for what it is, they are so far gone they actively reject and vote against something as simple and good as freedom.
Naturally, I've given up and don't really care. If people are so lacking in brain power and intellectual honesty they foolishly think they can get something for nothing and that such a system is sustainable in the long run, then they don't deserve the freedoms that true intellectual giants fought wars over to ensure. The question is whether you can admit the same and realize you're dealing with insanity when people reject freedom.
Stepping back allows you to clear your mind, take the horse blinders off, but most importantly allows you to see the situation for what it truly is.
For example, the eternal debate of Austrian vs. Keynesian economics. The front lines of this battle are between economic intellectual giants on both sides of the debate. Krugman, Reich, Williams, Sowell, you name it, heavy hitters from prestigious institutions of government and academia tender increasingly complex and researched arguments. It's like the Battle of Somme being waged, slugging it out, with no clear winner.
But what if instead of burrowing your head further into No Man's Land you instead, pull back, hop on a plane and take a look at the debate from a completely different, simpler, and admittedly, less-intellectual perspective?
You'd soon realize the debate is about whether the government knows what's best for the economy and has the right to intervene or whether it should be left up to the people.
The answer, if you're intellectually honest, is simply clear.
Global warming is another example. The pro-global warmists will through up a chart and claim we're all going to drown in 500 days, the anti-global warmists will show new data debunking said claims and the latest global warming models. Sheeple will believe who they choose to. Whoever is right, however, if you step back and look at it with different eyes you'll realize it is much more likely this is just the latest political ruse by socialists posing as caring "environmentalists" to get more of other people's money. But you can't come to that realization if you're steeped in the religious indoctrination, or in the throes of debunking it.
So a third "Step Back" observation dawned on me and its ramifications are quite depressing. And that is:
How f*cking hard is it to sell the platform of freedom to people?
Step back and think about this.
Those evil,
meanie,
bigotted,
racist,
fascist,
baby seal clubbing,
grandma tripping
Republicans want basically one simple thing:
Lower taxes.
And not just lower taxes for "the rich," but lower taxes for everyone.
Yes, duly noted, a faction within the Republican party is against abortion. Thank you leftists, we got the memo. But aside from that overly beaten accusation of a drum, their overall political product is freedom.
Now you would think, given logic and reason, the American people would in general want freedom. You would think, given the history of humans, where the vast majority of them were oppressed by the government, they would want LESS government and MORE individualism.
You would think.
The irony is, however, that it's damn well near impossible to sell freedom to the American people.
The question is why, and when you step back, clear your eyes, and think about it, the answer is quite scary.
Admittedly, part of the reason American's are so resilient to freedom is that the Republicans are the worst salesmen in the world for it. But although poor salesmanship is in part to blame, the real reason is that the American people have been brainwashed to think against their own, long term self interests.
This may sound conspiratorial, but it is not. This is only the natural consequence of a leftist political party that uses a public school system and a leftist media to convince people to;
1. Not think critically
2. Never develop the capacity for delay gratification
3. Never learn about basic personal budgeting and financial planning (you ever see this in schools?)
4. Hate and envy other, more successful groups of people, that they should be emulating instead
5. Self-rationalize why they are entitled to said successful people's lives in the form of their wealth
Of course, this scam is obvious to even the part-time observer of politics. But what is truly scary is how effective it is. It's so effective, and the people's brain's so dumbed down and impaired, they not only can't identify this ruse for what it is, they are so far gone they actively reject and vote against something as simple and good as freedom.
Naturally, I've given up and don't really care. If people are so lacking in brain power and intellectual honesty they foolishly think they can get something for nothing and that such a system is sustainable in the long run, then they don't deserve the freedoms that true intellectual giants fought wars over to ensure. The question is whether you can admit the same and realize you're dealing with insanity when people reject freedom.
