Ideology is Making Us Stupid

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http://20committee.com/2014/05/17/ideology-is-making-america-stupid/

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To many people on our planet, the USA in 2014 looks like a broken society pushing itself on others, often aggressively. While this depiction sounds ridiculous to most Americans, we must understand that is widely held by billions of people over the globe, including by many who are not congenitally anti-American. We cannot see this because we believe our ideologies so deeply that we never question their basic assumptions, Left or Right. One of the best things about getting out of the country is noting how, from abroad, the political divisions at home that seem so powerful appear trifling to foreigners, who note that beneath the Left and Right talking points there lie surprisingly common views of the world and America’s supposed place in it.

If you want to be a serious student of strategy, you need to see the world as it actually is, not how we might wish it to be. A reality-based assessment of all players, including yourself, must be the first step in developing effective strategy and policy. That is always a challenging undertaking, yet ideological blinders make it far harder than it ought to be. If you cannot get out of the country, read more. Talk to foreigners, see the world through their eyes for a bit. Get out of your comfort zone. If you think either FoxNews or MSNBC has a monopoly on truth, you need to diversify your mind. If you believe the flaws in our foreign policy can be explained by just one word, and that word is either “Bush” or “Obama,” you’re part of the problem.