It is as if we are all on a great journey and we entered an unexpected tunnel. Siloed, we did what was necessary to carry on “together”. In a very real way, we have become separated and conquered. We have allowed the extremes to stretch so far apart that there is no longer a true middle ground. This hurts us all.
The Great Journey
We are all on a “Great Journey”. Sharing experiences at times, none of us start or end at the same place. We rarely truly share moments. What is normal for me is a great day for some, a horrible day for others. We are simply not built the same. When we do share moments, it should be for the betterment of all. We fail at this. Miserably.
How we live our lives and how we share it with others matters. What I do, even in isolation, impacts you and vice versa. My decision to be outraged (yes, decision) helps determine my interactions with others. Basing my outrage on isolated channels of information can potentially be fatal to friendships. Echo chambers are dangerous. Echo chambers derail our journey.
To The Unknown
We have the world at our fingertips. Literally. We can hold, in the palm of your hands, more information than all of the world’s great libraries combined. Yet, if someone tells us something is fact, most of us take the lazy way out. We accept it as fact or, knowing better, let it slide because debate takes time and energy.
It is easier to act on what you are told to think than to actually think.
Stop being lazy. I was once told by a teacher that the human tongue has clearly defined salty and sweet areas. That same trusted teacher told me there are no pink elephants. I argued both points. I might still hold a bit of a grudge. Both of those facts are, in fact, not facts.
Why would educators teach me to believe things that are demonstrably not true? In certain instances, I am certain it was to make future lessons easier to teach. Unfortunately, this is the standard approach. It is far easier to reinforce generalized “fact” than have to explain away evidence to the contrary. Ultimately, we teach to pass standardized tests rather than to improve lives. Keep it simple stupid.
Except Life Is Not Simple
Create active learners who will question what they are told. That used to be the aim of public education. We have seriously dropped the ball and are paying the consequences for it today.
No doubt, I’ll get arguments. Many will go unspoken. If you’re like me, you realize how useless it is to argue about such things. It gets you nowhere. Hopefully, any argument will come equipped with appropriate citations. That alone would be an improvement.
