Like most Americans, I’ve been checking into Canadian citizenship. I hope that Doug Petersen will take me in, or maybe Dean Shareski. We live in uncertain times when tyranny may rear its ugly head. Or not. What got me reflecting on this? I blame Doug Johnson.
REFLECTIONS
This slightly introspective post was inspired by Doug Johnson. He writes over at The Blue Skunk Blog:
I am a middle class, college-educated white male with a career in education. In my heart of hearts, I believed that I always made decisions based on good information (that is what librarians preach after all – see CRAAP Test). I believed that I could make a dispassionate assessment of nearly any problem and devise a reasonable solution that is for the greater good. I believe in science, in math, in logic, in Neil deGrasse Tyson, and in the Oxford comma.Moreover, I believed that if others simply had all the facts, had half a brain, and had decent system of values, I could get anyone to agree with me on any issue. Those who did not were either misinformed, ethically challenged, or lacking brain power. Or the sky was simply a different color in their world.
As I read that first paragraph, and I thought, “Hey, I always believed librarians always knew what they were doing.” I must confess that I love librarians. I’ve never met one who tried to whack my hand with a ruler, shushed me, or failed to help me find a good yarn. That’s a good yarn, not the good yarn. I wish I had learned how to sew, but it was not considered a proper pursuit and now I’m only half as interested.
As I reflect on Doug’s perspectives, I realize that he and I have both enjoyed a different life than many. His, of course, is more rarified, more privileged. Mine, almost as much, but not quite. My parents worked hard to get me educated, and I love what I do.
Like Doug, I thought if people had the facts, that would be enough. Sure, there would be a period of adjustment as they came to understand the truth, but then, things would work out. At long last, the truth is relative.
The end is close for many Americans suffering COVID-19, and has come and gone for many others. It would be easy to end this retrospective with a simple reminder that wearing a mask saves lives. The truth is, Doug never answered why facts don’t convince. I might say, “The facts don’t convince anymore.”
I’d cry about it, but you know what? Doom on them. Sometimes, it takes cracking a few jawbones to get the facts straight.
Wait, wait…don’t make me take off my glasses.
😉
Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure
Discover more from Another Think Coming
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Another Think Coming 