#511 Musings Beyond the Bunker (Thursday November 17)
Good morning,
DEBATE, LISTENING AND BEING HEARD
Peter Bain recommends this book on debate: Good Arguments: How Debate Teaches Us to Listen and Be Heard https://g.co/kgs/5RmSmG
In coaching debate, we often tell the kids that the art is not in constructing and defending one’s own arguments. Certainly that’s important, but it’s not the most important skill. Rather, it is in understanding and refuting the arguments of your adversary. One way one can tell which debaters are likely the best is to watch them and see who’s scribbling the most notes when the other team is speaking. Those taking notes are listening carefully and recreating the other side’s arguments, so that they can articulate a response.
Of course in debate, it is a sport that determines winners and losers. When debating in the public square, it should be different. There need not be winners and losers. There need to be arguments logically made, good listening and thoughtful responses. The best debates when dealing with the challenges in the world are those that highlight the best arguments, are listened to carefully and thoroughly, and are put up against rigorous scrutiny. Out of that cauldron, good ideas can provide good direction and generate good solutions.
In today’s world, however, most of the listening is done to those with whom people agree, whether by the choice of cable news channel or publication or by that which Facebook, Twitter and others feed to us in order to play off of our confirmation bias and anger and keep us watching, listening and reacting—but not thinking.
ARE THE DAYS OF ALLIANCES GONE?
A disturbing expletive-rich and offensive phone call among several local lawmakers has sent shock waves through city government. In this instance it was Latino leaders primarily directing their invective against Black politicians. They were caught. No doubt there have been similar conversations among other politicians of other ethnicity. In all instances, they were trying to increase their voice while diminishing that of others. This is the “take no prisoners” way in which our leaders operate.
Tony Canzonerri notes that, “I continue to be mystified and disappointed that we can’t find a way to sublimate our competitive “winner take all” animal instinct to realize that there is enough to go around and to share and to enjoy the amazing advancements humanity has made in standards of living….”
So true. What was laid bare is that some of our Hispanic leadership views their political clout as a zero-sum game against their Black colleagues. It is a reminder that perhaps the real story of gerrymandering is less about political affiliation than about disenfranchising voters of a particular competitive ethnicity. The success of the Republican party to maintain disproportionate shares of the congressional delegations in many states accomplished through sprinkling Black voters through multiple districts—making it nearly impossible for Black voters to have reasonable representation in the congressional delegations. Rather than trying to work with these voters and the issues important to them, apparently it is better to neuter them. This is indicative of the poison that pervades our politics.
Have a great day,
Glenn
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