We seem to be very angry these days. Among other things, we are angry at the government because things aren’t going the way we want them to. It is a scary time right now because we are being pounded with messages about how bad “the other side” of the government is.
“They” are making bad decisions.
“They” are not listening to us.”
“They” have nefarious goals.
So, when angry, what do we do? Do we reach for the first person we can think of to blame?
Take 3 minutes and 25 seconds and watch the video here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZWf2_2L2v8 (Brené Brown is an American professor, author, and podcast host and is known for her work on shame, vulnerability, and leadership, and for her widely viewed TEDx talk in 2010)
And then ask yourself:
Am I really willing to listen to propaganda that paints another human faction as bad?
Shouldn’t I ask good questions that dig below the propaganda (like our commissioners are in the pockets of developers with nothing other than donation records as proof) because that is the right thing to do?
Shouldn’t I think for myself, rather than blame what might be the obvious, particularly if it isn’t the whole story?
We are complex human beings, and we create complex problems because each of us has our own paradigms. When those paradigms come together the complexity is exponential.
We want it to be easy though. We want a crusader on a white horse that rides in and saves us from the bad guys.
And apparently, we are sometimes willing to debase the other side in order to sell our platform.
I think we are better than that.
I think we can think for ourselves.
I think we can look at multiple sides.
I think we can have a dialogue about the deeper issues to figure out what is really going on.
I think we can work together.
Am I missing something?
about my county st johns county florida 