Pragmatism
Current location: Milwaukee, WI, USA
Reading: Echopraxia by Peter Watts
Listening: I Really Want to Stay At Your House by Rosa Walton & Hallie Coggins(if you have a moment, reply with your own 3-item status)
Pragmatism
I believe that looking for commonalities and shared concerns will typically lead to better outcomes than creating and reinforcing tribal (in the sociological sense of the word) labels, reflexively opposing anyone not of Our tribe and attempting to claim more power for Our side so They cannot stop us from doing what We want.
In politics, this type of thinking fuels some pretty cynical strategies, including but not limited to the full-scale blocking of any legislation that might conceivably make the other party (or parties) look good, even if doing so hurts essentially everyone.
Many ideological victories are won on the backs of well-meaning people who have been convinced to cheer for their own deprivation, because that sacrifice represents a victory for their perceived team over people they’ve been taught to think of as the enemy.
(The actual rewards often go to the people who teach them to think this way).
This isn’t just a political thing, though: we see it across all sorts of controversies and conversations.
Any disagreement over any detail of any topic is a potential spark for dogmatism—fanned by a desire for illusory but romanticized moral purity—which in turns serves as a wall against which to push; a means of further differentiating Us from Them.
One consequence of this social fracturing is a diminished capacity for making pragmatic, case-specific agreements and alliances when collaboration is necessary or desired.
When we need to reinvest in infrastructure, repairing and upgrading our roads, power grids, and bridges, it’s become common for a group to spike their opposition’s efforts even when everyone benefits from more reliable power and fewer potholes.
Opinions justifiably differ on how such investments should be made, but there are issues with a broad consensus that we’re unable to address because working with the alleged devils across the aisle can lead to ostracization for anyone who dares deviate from their group’s increasingly strict ideological confines.
Folks who believe the data on climate change, for instance, will typically support the construction of more renewable energy infrastructure, while those who don’t will sometimes oppose such efforts.
There’s room for collaboration when this topic is reframed in different terms, pivoting away from bumper-sticker slogans and keywords toward more substantial conversation.
These groups may find common ground in “energy security”- or “energy sovereignty”-related issues, for instance, which is part of why oil- and gas-happy Texas, run by climate change-skeptical politicians, is one of the biggest investors in wind power in the US (they produced just under 26% of the country’s wind power in 2021).
A purity-focused dynamic can also prevent cooperation within groups.
Some people in the green energy sector believe nuclear power should be part of our renewable-oriented future, but others consider the radioactive waste generated by such facilities to be a non-starter.
These sorts of relatively minor disagreements can keep folks who agree on a great many things (at times essentially everything beyond one minor sticking point) from working together on those shared interests, often because they fear empowering their perceived opposition.
And it’s rational to be wary of accidentally appeasing those acting in bad faith: seeming collaborators who are, behind-the-scenes, seeding the ground for in-group dominance and the disenfranchisement of anyone who dares question their doctrine.
Taken to its logical conclusion, though, assuming bad faith and eventual betrayal makes collaboration (and arguably progress, democracy, security, and similar values) all but impossible to maintain.
There’s a lot of collaborative low-hanging fruit out there for communities and leaders willing to acknowledge and pluck them.
Seeking out and leveraging common concerns allows us to enjoy continued growth and stability, even as we (respectfully and peaceably—in part because of those porous idealogical barriers) duke it out over all our also-important, more focused and narrow differences.
If you found some value in this essay, consider buying me a coffee :)
I could not be more thrilled that it’s now (arguably) baking-and-eating-carb-heavy-things season.
Some Things I've Made This Week
Aspiring Generalist: Perfectionism
Brain Lenses: Cognitive Exhaustion (podcast)
Climate Happenings: More Efficient Transparent Solar Panels
Let’s Know Things: US-Saudi Relations (podcast)
Interesting & Useful
The Museum of Ridiculously Interesting Things
An imaginary museum that explores the strange place between art and curiosities.
Sonic, Bane, all sorts of robots—lots of fun options.
Exactly what it sounds like (and exactly the sort of weird project I like to see on the web).
It looks like there may be some sorting-out-of-things in the coming weeks, but I for one will be thrilled not to have to see any more political ads (or receive so many increasingly desperate-seeming mailers) for at least a few months, now that the midterm ballots have been cast.
Outro
I’ve moved this newsletter, and most of my other email-based publications, back to Substack after having moved them to Revue about a year ago.
This is something I was thinking about doing already, as Substack has been making some interesting changes (and adding some compelling new tools) to their platform, while Revue was beginning to stagnate. But my hand was forced sooner than anticipated by Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter, as he reportedly plans to shut Revue down by the end of the year.
Which is a bummer! There was a lot to like about Revue. But here we are.
So that’s why this and future issues will look a bit different than they have for the past year: it’s a different platform with different styling options, and things will thus be a little experimental and wobbly for the next several missives. I’ll be playing with the design, and tinkering around with those aforementioned new tools, as well.
Sorry about that, and thanks for bearing with me through the transition!
I guess I should probably mention that I’m on Mastodon now (though I’m skeptical it will replace Twitter for most use-cases any time soon). You can more reliably reach me by replying to this newsletter or by writing to colin@exilelifestyle.com.
You can also communicate via the usual methods: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, or words against strangers.
If you’re finding some value in what I’m doing here, consider supporting my work: Become an Understandary member / Become a Patron / Buy me a coffee