Hello

Well, today is the 31st of January 2020. For some people, particularly for those who reside in the UK, this is quite a momentous day.

Yes, it’s Brexit day. A catastrophe for some, a joyous celebration for others. It depends on your perspective I suppose. It certainly has been divisive. However, what I suspect that most people will agree on, is that the extreme polarisation of normal societal discourse that Brexit has caused has been very destructive.

We appear to have lost the ability to have civil conversations, particularly so when there are quite radically differing perspectives.

What to do? My immediate thought, in an attempt to heal some of rifts (and they do not exist solely on relation to Brexit) is to remind ourselves about the difference between a debate and a dialectical approach.

We have seen lots and lots of debates, and generally time is short (if televised) and so the debater tends to go for the sound bite. The sound bite that (they hope) is most emotionally engaging. And the debater debates to win, to crush, to subjugate. The result? A highly emotive surface level argument that seems not to heal, but to further stoke resentment and polarisation.

What then could we do differently? My belief is that we should, in the first instance, gravitate away from the sound bites, and engage in more long form discussion. And, we should adopt a more dialectical approach, one where we go into a discussion with the knowledge that the other person/people may all have a diametrically opposed opinion, but that that is ok!

In fact it’s to be embraced, for what sort of world would it be if everyone thought in exactly the same way? Not good I fear.

Imagine how things could be transformed if we all seek first to understand (the perspective of the other, with all its subtleties and nuances) and are motivated solely by finding the truth.

Now, what a brave new world that would be!

Best

Mike

Here is a link to a video which expands on this a little more.