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Liberals or Conservatives: Who?s Really Close-Minded?
Apologies if this was already discussed--I don't remember seeing it.
To be ?close-minded? is, according to the dictionary, to be ?intolerant of the beliefs and opinions of others; stubbornly unreceptive to new ideas.? To be conservative and close-minded, according to popular portrayal, is a redundancy?a package deal that liberals can and do take for granted.
But University of Virginia Professor Jonathan Haidt?s new book The Righteous Mind doesn?t simply suggest that conservatives may not be as close-minded as they are portrayed. It proves that the opposite is the case, that conservatives understand their ideological opposite numbers far better than do liberals.
Haidt?s research asks individuals to answer questionnaires regarding their core moral beliefs?what sorts of values they consider sacred, which they would compromise on, and how much it would take to get them to make those compromises. By themselves, these exercises are interesting. (Try them online and see where you come out.)
But Haidt?s research went one step further, asking self-indentified conservatives to answer those questionnaires as ifthey were liberals and for liberals to do the opposite. What Haidt found is that conservatives understand liberals? moral values better than liberals understand where conservatives are coming from. Worse yet, liberals don?t know what they don?t know; they don?t understand how limited their knowledge of conservative values is. If anyone is close-minded here it?s not conservatives.
Haidt has a theory regarding why this is the case, based on the idea that conservatives speak a broader and more encompassing language of six moral values while liberals embrace three of the six in a narrow set of core values. I see nothing wrong with this explanation.
But let me present a complementary, more practical explanation: If you?re a conservative who lives in a major metropolitan area or who simply reads the New York Times, you get used to being outnumbered by liberals. Liberals, by contrast, get used to being surrounded by other liberals, both in person and in culture and the media. As a result, liberals speak their minds freely, often in ways that are harshly condemnatory of conservatives and their stands on issues. As a conservative, you can defend your values against friends and acquaintances who essentially just called you stupid and evil or you can keep quiet.
Most conservatives, most of the time, choose the latter. That is, they stay in the closet to avoid being accused of hating the poor, gays, or polar bears. As a result, liberals aren?t gaining any commensurate information. In fact, the silence of their conservative friends helps reinforce their views. Much of the time, liberals? views of conservative positions and values are simply a caricature that bear little resemblance to what conservatives actually think and, more importantly, why they think it.
But during that time when conservatives? mouths are shut, their ears are open. They?re listening and understanding what liberals think?and what liberals think of them. Conservatives understand their own world?whether it?s of religious organizations, talk radio, Fox News, or whatever?along with the New York Times, network news world of liberals.
That helps explain why a conservative?s reaction to a liberal critique often isn?t ?you?re wrong.? It?s ?you don?t even know what I?m trying to say.? Haidt?s research seems to show that this reaction is warranted.
Re: Liberals or Conservatives: Who?s Really Close-Minded?
As a result, liberals speak their minds freely, often in ways that are harshly condemnatory of conservatives and their stands on issues. As a conservative, you can defend your values against friends and acquaintances who essentially just called you stupid and evil or you can keep quiet.Most conservatives, most of the time, choose the latter. That is, they stay in the closet to avoid being accused of hating the poor, gays, or polar bears.
So, so true.
Where we're these liberals and conservatives quizzed?
The explanation makes sense of those tested are from someplace like Boston or NYC.
If this were Wichita, KS, I would expect the opposite--liberals well versed with conservative ideology. I find myself in this situation being a life-long Kansan. And sure I have NPR, but my conservative friends have FOX News.
ITA with this.
But I guess to the author's point, libs shouldn't assume conservatives hate gays and polar bears, and we shouldn't assume that legislation that works against gays and polar bears isn't out of just plain meanness.
Speaking as someone who avoided any and all political and religious discussions while living in rural Mississippi, I completely agree with this. Having lived in a variety of different places around the country the notion of a cowed conservative population at large in the United States is laughable to me.
Thank you. I wonder if this was intentionally trying to re-frame the issue to win the open-minded trophy, or this person really just wrote a book entirely missing the point.
This could explain, however, why the Republicans are much better at politics in general. You have to understand the other side to beat it.
Ditto to the PP who mentioned that this seems to be relevant in Boston/NYC and the opposite would be true in Kansas. I didn't read more in depth - where did the author get the sample from?
What could be a possible motive for wanting legislation against gays other than "I hate gays"? Serious question here.
I can see the legislation against polar bears being justified by more jobs, boosting the economy etc. etc.
I loved Kitty's response.
Above Us Only Sky
They don't hate the gays. They just find them inferior to the straights.
I have no idea what the other motivation could be. Well, if one believes homosexuality is contagious then it would be a danger. Like if you believe if your kids see gay people on TV or if they learn about homosexuality in sex ed that they will catch it, that sort of thing. Then I guess you would argue it's a danger to society and to the family?
That's me channeling Rick Santorum.
But during that time when conservatives? mouths are shut, their ears are open. They?re listening and understanding what liberals think?and what liberals think of them. Conservatives understand their own world?whether it?s of religious organizations, talk radio, Fox News, or whatever?along with the New York Times, network news world of liberals.
Kind of like that time we had the multi-page thread because Pamela didn't think libs taught their kids that life is unfair? Or that wanting an equal playing field is not the same as equal outcomes. That kind of understanding?
There's a religious element that considers being gay a sin. It would be the obligation of an upright society to try and stamp out that sin, both by trying to get the people doing it to stop doing it and (in the case of legislation) by avoiding at all costs "legitimizing" it. Protect the children and all that crap.
yay blanket statements!
lolz that my conservative mom knows her talking points better than I.
FTFY
I don't believe the bolded at all. The repubs absolutely do not think that libs are right. We may have similar goals like we all want what's best for America, or we both think that we are doing what's ultimately best for everyone, in the big picture. But cons do not think libs are right nor are they secretly glad about anything we do.
Yeah, this thread doesn't prove anything.
HA!
Click me, click me!
black people used to be statistically inferior and they were allowed to marry.
I think both sides are closed-minded depending on the locale and the issue at stake, and also depending on what is driving those views.
Political beliefs tend to stem from either religious, cultural or economic views, and depending on what the topic is, the level of 'open-mindness' is bound to be different.
Precisely. I am LMAO over here.
Find me here instead!
they weren't allowed to marry whites.
Lol
I agree with this. It's not that I don't understand what some conservative positions ARE. I just don't understand the hate and/or intolerance that stands behind some socially conservative positions.
And trust me, I have said before that I totally GET being pro-life if you think abortion is murder. That's something I certainly understand and will not really attempt to debate because the beliefs between someone who thinks abortion is murder and the beliefs of someone who thinks abortion is an integral part of a woman's bodily integrity are leagues apart. Anti-gay marriage? We've had the discussion here before, and no one could really figure out a reason other than, "But gay people are icky!" or that your religion dictates it, neither of which are good reasons to pass laws.
40/112
+1.
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Both sides can be closed-minded, in their own ways and for their own reasons.
There are stupid liberals and there are stupid conservatives.
I just don't see how this article is proving a point one way or the other.
Also, Jesus was black. Probably gay too, but definitely black.
LOL. So it's the Democrats who've been proposing transvaginal ultrasound bills? I would actually agree with him that those things aren't that important to the GOP, but I'd argue that the party uses them to rally the social conservatives to the voting booth. It was no coincidence that gay marriage bans were on the 2004 ballot.
I do think sbp raises an interesting point re: how you define "closed minded."
I'm not touching the rest of this hot mess.
I think this is partially true--there's nothing the left wants more than to define the GOP by social issues. But then I also think sometimes we get lazy and campaign based on Jesus rather than try to explain economic theory to people.
Find me here instead!
I'm sorry but some of you are wrong. Black folks were not always allowed to marry each other.
That's where the tradition of jumping the broom came from.
Click me, click me!
I'm confused.
If this is the case, then why do I have this idea in my head that Republicans are using these as some of their core talking points (besides healthcare reform)?
For instance, these were the main things that Rick Santorum talked about while he was on his campaign.