Keeping Me in Check (Part 1)

It happened again. As I’ve said before, the presidential election is getting closer and closer, and now people are starting to really look at the candidates. More importantly, now people are starting to talk. Back when Huckabee, McCain, Guiliani, and all the other Republicans were battling for the nomination spot, not a whole lot of people were talking. When Hilary was clawing for any possible way to stop Obama’s surging campaign and trying to hold on to what she thought to be her historical Democratic nomination, only a few people were talking. When Mike Gravel was raving about how every soldier in Vietnam “died in vain,” still I didn’t hear much talking. But now it’s September and with the election only 2 months away, people are starting to talk.

And I am starting to talk. This whole time I have been quietly following the candidates and the issues, listening to what columnists, analysts, bloggers, preachers, writers, and friends have to say about the election. To be honest, I was kind of afraid of what was going to happen when the time got closer and the topic of politics came up in conversation more. I knew that around here my decision wouldn’t be the popular one, a decision that would surely be challenged, and I didn’t know if I would be able to defend it. I figured that my mind would go blank and I wouldn’t be able to think of something to say – something that happens way too often with me.

But the other day I told somebody I was an Obama supporter (not Faye). This lady was a McCain supporter, and we actually had a really good conversation about the election. Even while we disagreed on our candidate, we found a lot of common ground on what we wanted out of the next president. We both wanted change, but we just disagreed on which person would be more likely to bring that change.

Today I got into another conversation about the election, with someone who is also a McCain supporter, and we got into more of a friendly argument. I explained to him a few things I like about Obama and then he came back at me with criticism, and then I explained more and he criticized me more. And so I criticized him and he explained himself and then criticized me some more; and we went back and forth for probably a good half hour. Even though it was annoying at times, and difficult to get my point across to someone who didn’t see it my way, I was really glad to have that argument. I used to think I would be afraid of doing this, but today I learned I actually like it.

There is a Jimmy Eat World song I like called “Carry You” that has a line in it that says this:

It’s easy feeling righteous when removed
All you get is what you want to hear

I like this line because it speaks a truth that is sometimes so hard for me to accept. It points out that it is so easy for us as people to surround ourselves with other people who are just like we are and agree with everything we say - people who never really challenge us or make us think about what we believe. If I’m a voter this year and I am voting Democrat, it is so much easier for me to talk to somebody who is voting like I am than it is to talk to somebody who completely disagrees with me. And it would be easy for me to give in to that, to not engage in a debate with someone with a different point of view, but would it be a good idea? I don’t really think so. If I only talk to people who agree with what I say and I’m not challenged by other peoples’ perspectives, then it is very likely I will be wrong about a lot of things and be deluded because I will think I’m right. And I will walk around with some sort of self-righteous sense about me. But without having my beliefs and ideas challenged, the flaws will never be exposed; and instead of believing the truth, I will be deluding myself with a half-truth or something that isn’t even true at all.

What I’m trying to say is that I need to be challenged.

I bought season 4 of the TV show House a couple weeks ago and I’ve been watching it a lot lately. In the first several episodes of this season, Dr. House has to hire a new diagnostic team, a team of doctors that discuss the symptoms of their patient and help figure out what’s wrong with him/her. He finally selects a team of 3 doctors and starts training them as they learn how to work with a doctor that is as rude and quirky as House is, and lots of times his training involves making them play weird games and perform crazy tasks. In one episode, House makes his team do some absurd task that has nothing to do with the case they are on, and his team actually goes and does it without any questioning. All the while, House tries to diagnose his patient virtually by himself. So eventually, after they have finished their task, his team comes back and tells House that they did what he told them to do. So what does House do? Well, he chews them out.

Kutner, one of the doctors on the team says, “But we did what you told us to do!”

And House replies, “Well, I didn’t want you to do it. I need you to stand up to me!”

Later on in the episode, while they are trying to figure out what’s wrong with the patient, Kutner suggests a certain diagnosis and House just insults him and tells him he’s wrong. But then Kutner keeps going and stands up to House, and in doing so he forces House to consider another perspective and House solves the case because of it.

Even a genius, fictional doctor can make an error if he is allowed to come up with his own ideas unchallenged. When he was selecting his team, he chose people who were different than him – people who would think differently and react differently. In one episode, a possible team doctor comes up with the same brilliant theories as House does, and at the end of the episode House fires him. He doesn’t need a doctor to tell him what he already knows.

One thing I like about my sister is that I can tell her something I’ve been thinking about, and if it’s absurd or stupid in any way (and a lot of times it is), she won’t hesitate to tell me. And if I’m talking about something and not making any sense, she will always tell me. Sometimes the challenge will force me to explain myself better, or to think harder, and then other times I realize I’m an idiot for thinking some of the things I think and then drop it completely. But if it wasn’t for her challenging me, I probably wouldn’t realize how ridiculous I can be sometimes.

People have to be kept in check. Sometimes this takes an unpleasant argument, or a discussion where a person feels a little dumb at the end, but these things are necessary. It’s been a few months since the evolution discussion happened, but this is a great example. My conclusion is still the same as it was then, but because of the argument, I realized that my reasoning did have some flaws and weak points. It took other people pointing them out and criticizing for me to see them, because I was blind to them. Sometimes this is just what it takes to come up with right ideas. If they stand up and make sense, then they might be right. But if they fall under criticism then it exposes the weaknesses and it’s back to the drawing board.

I’m glad to know that my political ideas are standing up. Every time I voice my support for Barack Obama I feel less like an idiot. This should happen more often, it really should.