RE: “Git Gud” – You Don’t Want An Objective Review, You Want Your Opinion Parroted
There is a quote I read once and have never been able to find again (so maybe it was fake but it was true nonetheless) basically saying that people will not change their minds about the most clearly fictitious beliefs if they hold those beliefs dear, if those beliefs have defined who they are in some way. Your post is entertaining, but this tribalistic bent of humanity is unfortunately less so.
We see it in people's devotion to sports' teams, alma maters, even toxic family, neighborhoods, races, ethnicities, and of course, nations. Some degree of 'local loyalty' is of course good. I think it is only right that in practice a mother is more dedicated to the upbringing of her own children than to--say--flying to a third world country and taking care of other children while her own are neglected.
Because one can know those within a smaller sphere more truly, trust can be more rationally engendered on smaller, local (though of course the definition of local is changing with internet communities) scales. Only with trust can loyalty be rationally given.
But our brain still craves short-cuts and so great multitudes of people still throw rabid allegiance to anyone who seems "like" them in any number of arbitrary and essentially meaningless ways. Thank you for tossing a bit of reason into an unreasonable world ;)
This topic is one refrain that I've been repeating in my non-fiction writing for the better part of a decade now. It is everywhere, and it is deeply troubling. It is what leads to people attacking what others enjoy, the behaviour on Tumblr and 4Chan, and many others.
I am all for keeping your personality small. What I mean by this is not being humble, and I do not speak against empathy, but against tethering your personhood to outside things.
It is also evidently seen in politics and religions at times, where the one you completely disagree with? Not much cause to argue with them, because you're not even close. But the fiercest fights of doctrine are with those we agree on most things with.
And thank you for weighing in Jess. It's a tough fight to fight. But one of the more important ones. It deals with how we define ourselves, and how we relate to others. What more important things are there?
Yes, that's an excellent way to put it. I also think the the way we are schooled has much to do with it. At least in the US a school rarely teaches people how to learn things or how to examine a position critically. Most of the thirteen (now with pre-pre-school) sometimes 15 years of public schooling we receive is focused on memorizing a point of trivia then regurgitating it. Here's the important part: If you are right, you are rewarded. You are given a sticker, a homework pass, an ice cream, a special status. Most children spend their formative years being rewarded for being right and penalized for being wrong most of their day. Under such conditions how can one avoid having a significant part of one's self-worth entangled in the notion of being right?