Humans form groups. Being a part of those groups changes our psychology. We see the best in our group and the worst in our rivals. When people agree with us, it activates the brain’s reward systems. When other people reject us, we feel real, physical pain. Because of this, groups tend to develop narratives, shared beliefs about how the world works.
Does power corrupt anyone who possesses it? Liberals, say, “No, of course not.” Power simply reveals who you really are. If you were a good person to start with, then you will handle power responsibly. If you abuse power, it’s because you were always the sort of person who was disposed to that sort of thing. This fits perfectly with liberalism’s emphasis on individuality and personal responsibility.
Socialists, however, say that power most certainly corrupts everyone who possesses it. This is simply a fact of life. Humans are simply the product of the social systems that shape them. Which group is correct?
If you can get past the Washington Post’s paywall, you’ll see that both articles cite studies to back up their claims. This issue has been studied multiple times with different teams of researchers reaching radically different conclusions. Does power corrupt? Sometimes. That’s the best answer I can give you.
But we’re not here to weigh in on that question. I bring it up only to illustrate the ways in which different groups embrace radically different worldviews, worldviews that align with the goals of that group.
I am not immune from this.
You are not immune from this.
The Left has a narrative, a way of describing how the world works. If you identify with the Left, you will embrace their worldview because social pressure will compel you to. You can resist, of course, but if you do, you will very quickly find yourself persona non gratis with a lot of leftists. I can attest to that from personal experience.
Russian meddling, economic insecurity, diversity and representation, political compromise: I’m willing to bet that I can guess where you stand on these issues based solely on whether you identify as a socialist, a liberal or a conservative. There are outliers, of course, but not many.
What you need to understand about me is that I’m a freak. Always have been. I tend to alienate everyone because I don’t conform to group narratives. Maybe it’s the autism; I don’t know. It is my superpower. And my kryptonite.
For a long time, I thought that this was some kind of flaw in me. That I had to find a group and stick with them. First, it was the social justice or “woke” crowd. Then it was the economic left. But in each case, I found aspects of the group’s philosophy that I disagreed with. And though we might agree on 95% of the issues — the social justice community is generally correct; the economic left is generally correct — that 5% was enough to get me excommunicated from large portions of each group.
I will tell you the truth as I see it. Which is not necessarily what you want to hear and not necessarily what you already believe. Nor is it necessarily correct. Anything I say is subject to revision, and if it turns out that I was wrong, I will revise my opinion when new information comes to light.
Now, a lot of people say they do this, but they don’t actually do it. Because to actually live by this philosophy would get you exiled from a lot of social groups, particularly those that are politically active. And as we’ve already established, social rejection causes real pain. Much easier to just go along and get that dopamine rush.
If I tell you something you don’t want to hear, it is not because I’m selling out to the establishment. I am genuinely telling you my interpretation of the facts as best as I can determine them. And that interpretation will change based on whatever happens next.
I’ll defend AOC right up until the point that she does something that I consider to be indefensible. At that point, I will have no choice but to revise my opinion. Whether or not the rest of the Left agrees is irrelevant. I will tell Ryan Knight that he’s wrong about AOC, right up until the point that I see evidence that he is correct.
That’s all I can do.
If that alienates everybody, well I’m sorry. I did my best.
