Perhaps I got up on the wrong side of the bed. Maybe I’m a bit cranky from the heat. But I found myself feeling a little upset over some things I’ve been seeing on the social network sites lately. After thinking about it for a while, I decided I needed to say something. I also decided I needed to say something that was more measured and thoughtful than my initial reaction. I suppose a bit of “cooling off” is a good thing to do where an emotional reaction is quick to surface. If some of this sounds a little too much like a scolding- I apologize in advance. My goal here is to give some serious consideration to the way social media and our political discourse have melded into catchy, fast-as-lightning, phrases that sound good, but promote some dangerous, and horribly inaccurate stereotypes.
I have a Facebook account. I use it. I enjoy it. Facebook provides me with a way to do a number of things I likely wouldn’t be able to do otherwise. I even get this blog out to people with Facebook. It’s a great way to keep up with friends and associates, as well as learn about current events my Facebook friends find important. I think that’s kind of cool. As with anything so wide ranging as the reach of Facebook, and other social media sites, there are always going to be those items and issues where people disagree. I like the fact that we can disagree- and I like the fact that social media sites give us a place to exchange ideas and offer different points of view. With the heat of the political season upon us, it’s only natural that these social media sites will be jammed with pre-packaged ads and placards that so easily get shared on our networks with just a click of the mouse. I have done it myself- though I always try to be careful to avoid those that offer a slogan without some accompanying well-reasoned thought.
I’ll be the first to admit that my way of thinking doesn’t reflect the majority of other people’s thinking. I know my leanings are way to the progressive left of most people. But, I also recognize that there are some conservative and moderate thoughts that are legitimate and deserve respectful debate. The problem I’m having is the way we go about disagreeing, or even debating the issues of the day. The discourse has become so narrow, personal, and divisive that it is becoming nearly impossible to ever rationally examine an issue. The idea of applying critical thinking to the important issues of the day has given way to name calling and innuendo. It seems all sides are guilty of abandoning rational debate in favor of sloganeering and name calling. The other day President Obama called Mr. Romney’s tax plan –“RomneyHood”, the reverse of Robin Hood. So naturally Mr. Romney had to come back with “Obamaloney”. These are two very smart men who want to be leader of the free world. Come on! The real issue is their respective tax policies, but nobody will hear the actual debate on those tax policies. They’ll only hear the name calling. Of course we are still going round and round on Mr. Romney’s tax returns with Harry Reid making claims he won’t back up, and the Romney camp calling Senator Reid a “Dirty Liar”- when the whole thing could be resolved by just disclosing the returns like every other candidate has done since 1968. Like they used to say on The X-Files- “the truth is out there!” But we are all stuck in a bumper sticker mentality and never pursue the real truth, or get to the real issue.
I shouldn’t be too surprised by the lack of critical thinking. There is no premium placed on it anymore. In spite of the obvious reasons all of us should aspire to, and employ, higher thinking skills in this complicated world, our leaders don’t promote it- or practice it by example. Last month the Texas State School Board decided to specifically delete “critical thinking” skills from all public school curriculum. This may explain why so many employers these days complain they can’t fill jobs because many applicants just don’t have problem solving skills and abilities.
It is so demoralizing to find a lack of critical thinking skills combining with widespread social media to encourage stereotyping, along with the political junk-thinking we get every day. It is bad enough when inaccurate notions get spread around. But it borders on tragic that they can be spread so quickly and without much thought about the consequences. Case in point: A placard posted on Facebook showing a woman in a grocery checkout line with the caption “wish I could afford a nice iPhone like that woman using food stamps.” The point is clear- people on food stamps are all cheaters. That is an incorrect stereotype- but politically convenient. I can think of several legitimate reasons a low-income person might have a smart-phone, that don’t include the inference that they’re just out to cheat the tax-payer. (I’m happy to detail some reasons upon request) But in these divisive times it is comforting to blame others- to find a bad guy who is an easy target. These days there is no easier target than the poor (including low-income working people). President Reagan was the master of this tactic when he made popular the notion of the “welfare queen”. There was no evidence to back up this stereotype, but it was an image that became popular and allowed us to pass judgments about people in five seconds- just like that inaccurate placard I saw on a number of Facebook pages.
I don’t necessarily blame some folks for gravitating to these quick and easy judgments about people (particularly in this hot political climate) because it’s so easy to do, and our technology gives us ready-made materials to do it with. The truth is that everyone has their own story and we can’t possibly know the facts of a stranger’s life. We can’t know their history, and the events that got them where they are at that one moment we see them. Yet, that first impression often has us jumping to a conclusion or a judgment. Even though there are so many inducements to make quick judgments and to categorize people on very little information, we must refrain from doing it. I can see why the politicians want us to stay uninformed, and reject critical thinking. It makes us much more susceptible to any old crap that fits in a 30 second commercial, or a quick ditty from the Internet- but we can be smarter than that. I doubt any of us would want to be judged on any one incident, or one tiny slice of information about us, so we should not be so quick to judge others based on so little knowledge- in spite of how easily it can be done in this climate of social media. In the writings of the Christian faith, the faithful are urged to “judge not- lest ye be judged” (Mathew: 7). We all make judgments; and, we should make sound judgments about people who matter in our lives. But I think the real admonition in Mathew’s Gospel is to refrain from making uninformed (and therefore) unfair judgments. One way to do that is take a moment to consider other possibilities before jumping to conclusions, most especially about people we don’t know. It can have a real impact on the way we see, treat and act towards others. It also has very real implications in public policy and the continuing formation of our culture.
Thanks for letting me get that off my chest. Perhaps so many years of working with people on the fringes of society, and those who have suffered real trauma early in their lives, has influenced me to take a deeper look at people in order to really understand the story of how they got where they are. And perhaps I’m just a little frustrated when so many leaders (or would-be leaders) we look to for an example of thoughtful consideration of the day’s events, tend to let us down. Let’s hold them and ourselves to higher standard.
Thanks for looking in.
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