I have had discussions with climate change deniers
In person and online
I have gone into their minds, behind enemy lines
That I phrase it like this is the crux of the problem
Democratic dialogue denied
We are not one polis
what is said and what is heard across an ideological divide is rarely the same
In youth I had a Mormon girlfriend for a few months
Blessed with curiosity I explored what their missionaries presented
My worried scientist mother gifted me a referenced counter narrative
The absurdity of their belief became apparent
I loved the girl but who was I to try and take away her faith?
Exit stage right. Heartbreak endured.
As I discussed climate change with the denier it struck me how similar his mode of thought was to that of the Mormons.
Busy mind with all the details circling around never to touch down on verifiable evidence
Belief and understanding conflated
Ask God to speak to your heart
A smug self-satisfaction for being in possession of the truth
A heroic narrative of courage to believe amidst the infidels
Argument simply strengthens resolve, get ye behind me Satan fake news
So here we are, burning in hell.
flimsy rhetorical arguments about fuel load and arsonists protecting faith of belonging to the righteous tribe
Heads full of self-talk with no room for observation
Merchants of doubt sold enough product to enable ongoing cognitive dissonance
Meanwhile the planet is getting hotter
‘Reality bites go outside’ I said, effectively giving up on that particular online dialogue.
Dialogues not in vain, insights gained
If you have not learned the methodology of evidence-based reason you can’t see it in another’s argument
It is all just he said she said
we are back to Socrates arguing with the sophists
truth being determined by rhetorical skill.
Did Socrates corrupt little boys or was that fake news? They killed him either way.
They are still killing him
It seems right now that the tide of public opinion has turned but, in the ocean, it turns four times a day.
Scotty from marketing was on 2GB with a calibrated message for the audience
We laughed at Trumps incoherent messages
Then he won the election
Then Brexit
Then Scomo
Then Boris
Cambridge Analytica et al…
In our fractious information environments incoherence is a strength because it allows for targeted messaging across a wider range of grouping.
Critical literacy is in decline as evident by national mathematics and science education levels
Propaganda is more effective than a science paper in the court of public opinion
$$$ = power, stupid
The best news I have read all year is Adam Morton’s Guardian article on declining coal prices, but they still have a huge war chest and political alliance, at least in the anglosphere.
But what to do?
The bushfires are indeed a crisis
A time for decisions by definition
People will be making up their minds
Evidence is that those directly affected by trauma are open to a change in world view when a reality of experience contradicts their previous world view. Witnesses from a safe distance are more likely to have their views entrenched. See USA gun debate.
A lot of people have had a direct experience of this trauma so there is a huge opportunity for a reset but don’t take it as granted.
Fossil fuel interest will be just as aware of this critical time and carefully targeting calbrated messages into their mapped networks.
Posturing for moral high ground is selfish, rife and counterproductive as it digs deeper divides. It is the Achilles heel of progressivism. Save us from the zeal of fresh converts.
I don’t really know what to do
At 20 years old I baulked at the idea of taking away someone’s faith
The burden of responsibility was too great despite the inner suffering I was beginning to detect
Now I am ready to take the blow torch out
Many systems of belief have this trick of promising to heal the wound they have created
Gaslighting
BOM is changing the data and your childhood was hotter than this inferno.
Anybody got any tips on how to approach these people?
Challenge them without appearing as Satan?
I’m diving back in and this will get ugly
I’m the other
‘they are coming after the patriarchy!’ warned Steve Bannon
I’m not a feminist but fuck the patriarchy
Fellas, you have never been more than cannon fodder for those guys
They lie and manipulate for their own ends
Oh but in doing so they validate your petty selfish being
You feel part of something ‘great again’ despite your disempowered existence
Sadomasochistic authoritarianism rears its head again
A selfish mean spirited person is blind to another’s compassion
What do you want?
Don’t buy the neoliberal myth
We are a social species
We are wired to connect to other people, places and times
But if this fails is your enemy’s enemy your friend?
An incoherent message of hate and love?
memes strategically crafted and targeted undermining vested fossil fuel interests
not just bouncing around offering vindication in our echo chambers
who knows the dark arts of social media targeted advertising?
‘Now is not the time’ they say but actions speak louder than words and however clumsy the PM bushfire advert was is very clearly stated ‘now is the time’.
These bushfires are shocking but don’t take a shift in consciousness as granted
Now is the time for a significant strategic step up for all of us.
See you out there in the world sorting this shit out
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