Everyone's Stupid But Me

The title of this blog is highly reflective of my own mindset when I let it wander where it will.  It is also highly reflective of so many of the thoughts I see everywhere.  Facebook posts are evidence of this.  Ignorance runs rampant on the dusty fields of Facebook.  In one corner I can see one person screaming their opinion to no one and way over in another I can see someone else screaming their opinion either, again, to themselves or to a group of like-minded people.  The boldness that the internet brings people is entirely unhealthy for the debtaes that often find themselves on Facebook.  The realm of debate no longer finds itself in collections of real people, but is now manifested in the forums of text-based conversations where there is no physical image to relate to other than the straw men we build for those who dare oppose our view.  We sit back and think as the title of this blog suggests: that all other opinions besides our own are nothing but folly.

I might not find this so alarming but for the fact that our actions on the internet carry over to our actions in-person.  Our boldness in our Facebook posts encourages a boldness in real-life that stirs not positive mindsets, but spurs other-minded people to further entrench themselves within their own manner of thinking.  Tell me: when you see a post directly against what you believe plastered on Facebook for all to see, what is your thought process?  "Oh, what a lovely exercise of our freedom of speech" or "What a valid point" are not likely to be high on the list of responses.  This is reflective of two things: our personal ability to dismiss oppositional arguments as nothing more than stupidity and the extremely surface-level arguments that we use to justify our beliefs.  Somewhere along the line, our debates became more about entertaining the audience rather than presenting good reasoning for beliefs.  We approach arguments with the intent of injury on a personal level rather than wisdom on a group level.  

Every day I feel this intent within my own mind.  I really want to put out a statement that will REALLY make someone feel stupid.  I'll think for hours on end of what I could say that would "win the crowd over" to my thinking.  But I constantly remember that that is not what I am called to do.  We need to speak the truth IN LOVE.  This is applicable to all people, though, not just to Christians.  The only way we can actually make progess in this world is to work with people, not against them.  Life is not a competition sport meant to be won by some and not by others, but so often I find it treated as such.  There is no lasting joy in a argument you think you won because nobody retained any positive effect from its discourse.  We need to approach every situation involving two opposing views as an opportunity to grow in out thinking rather than a game to be won.  The only way anyone wins is if we behave as rational (mature) adults.

I was not originally planning on doing this topic for today, but my Facebook feed necessitated it.  Today people were waving the flags of their "sides."  While it's great to see people standing up for what they believe in, this is not an instance of that good.  What is happening on Facebook right now is people waving their flags in other people's faces.  People poking at others and provoking them into stupid arguments.  The intent of the flag-raisers is not to express pride in their own beliefs, but to cast shame on the beliefs of others.  These are the actions of those who think their own mindset is innately superior to others'.  I'm not being a hypocrite either here: I had to fight the temptation to throw up my own flag, to join the tussle of warring factions.  We're all guilty of creating straw men of our enemies and acting on our stereotypes.  These straw men have become more apparent as communication has become less and less personal.  

My adivce for people is this: get to know these people who hold opposing views.  Most people have fairly good reasons for believing what they believe.  Try not to debate people on the internet because it is so easy to speak to that straw man in our heads rather than the real person standing across from you.  And, most importantly, have an open mind!  An individual is not capable of holding all the answers in life, so why should we think that we are?  The more I talk to people, the more I realize I do not understand things.  This does not mean I change my views, but I have a better understanding of why others think the way they think and it gives me more incentive to find good reasoning for my own beliefs.  And, in the end, if my own beliefs hold no water, why am I holding on to them?