Inquiry: They are too caught up in ideology

They are too caught up in ideology. (Conservatives in the US when they support approaches that research shows are not working, and don’t support approaches that research and examples from other countries shows are working. It is not only stupid, it shows dishonesty and a lack of compassion and alignment with reality.)

1. True?
   Yes.
2. Sure it is true?
   No. This too is just an opinion, and quite one-sided as well.
3. What happens when I believe that thought?
   • I get agitated. I make them wrong and myself right. I get caught up in stories showing how I am right and they are wrong.
     • They support programs that all research shows are not working, such as abstinence-only and DARE. They don’t want universal health care, even if examples from other countries shows it works far better than what they have in the US. (Higher quality of care at less cost, accessible for anyone.) They don’t support policies that creates a more egalitarian society, even if all research and examples from other countries show that egalitarian societies function better in all respects – including safety, trust, reduced crime, health and well-being.
     • They set their own ideology higher than human life. They set their own ideology higher than more informed, kind and wise decisions. When they preach abstinence and don’t promote or make it easier to use contraception, they set up a situation where unwanted children are conceived, which in turn leads to abortions. When they promote the DARE program instead of programs that work, they set up a situation where young people get into drugs even if it could have been prevented. When they sabotage any attempts to move in the direction of universal health care, they condemn large number of people to bankruptcy and preventable illness and death.
   • I take it further. They are not only wrong, they are stupid, misinformed, lack compassion, out of alignment with reality, dark hearted.
   • I seek out views that align with my belief, and avoid views that clash.
   • I feel good about being right, and agitated since they don’t get it. There is stress, tension, discomfort, restlessness. A sense of separation. Isolation. Of not belonging when I am in the US, or think about living there.
   • I tell myself they get what they want. They support strategies that creates a ruthless, unequal and unkind society, and that is what they get. And the very people who support it are the ones who suffer from it, just from having to live in such a society, or more directly if they lose health insurance or work, or are exposed to violence due to poverty and desperation.
   • I even want them to suffer, so they get to experience the consequences of their views. (And at the same time feel compassion and want them to not suffer.)
   • What do I fear would happen if I didn’t have that belief? I fear I would see the validity in their views. Not only that, I fear I would go over to the “dark side” and agree with their views.
   • How likely is that to happen? Not very likely. I grew up in a culture with a very different orientation, and I see that it works far better in every way, so I am not likely to support a diametrically opposite system. I can (easily) acknowledge the validity in their views, understand where they are coming from, recognize that it makes sense for them, and still not agree that it is a good course for society. I already do that in many areas, so can do it here as well.
4. Who am I without it?
   • Receptive. Receptive to the validity of their views. Receptive to the ways it makes sense to them.
   • Curious. Curious about other approaches that may acknowledge the validity of more views, including theirs.
5. Turnarounds.
   • They are not too caught up in ideology.
     • Hm. I guess they want to be caught up in it, so they are getting what they want. (At some level at least, even if it brings discomfort.)
     • They believe stories, so get caught up in them. It is a natural dynamics.
     • What is happening there has infinite causes. Who am I to argue?
   • I am too caught up in ideology.
     • Yes. That is more true. When I have that story about them, and believe it, I get caught up in my own ideology. I am the one who take stories as more important than what is more honest for me. I am the one who get fundamentalist about it. It is right here.
     • In general, it is true as well. I easily attach to viewpoints without checking what is more honest for me.
   • They are too little caught up in ideology.
     • Right. It would help me notice my own beliefs if they were more caught up in their own. It would intensify the situation, trigger my own hangups.
     • They want to, so could go further.
     • If they were, they would get the consequences of it more clearly. They may recognize the dynamics more easily for themselves.
   • They are too caught up in pragmatism.
     • Hm! This one is more difficult to find.
     • Again, they want to be caught up in ideology – it may feel safe, be a way to avoid fear, give a sense of community, give a sense of knowing what is right and wrong and so on – so pragmatism tends to ruin their project. (And for me as well, where I am doing the same.)
     • When I believe my own stories about them, it is more convenient if they act according to it. When they are pragmatic, it ruins my stories about them.
   • My thinking is too caught up in ideology.
     • Yes, especially when it believes itself.

Additional beliefs: They are dishonest. They lack compassion. They are not aligned with reality. They get what they deserve. I know what is best. I know the best direction for society.