A Key Sign Americans Are Turning Against Wokeness
A Key Sign Americans Are Turning Against Wokeness
USA Today published an odd story claiming the majority of Americans have a favorable view of the term “woke.” The editors were kind enough to offer a blanket warning to Republicans that attacking such a favorably viewed term may be a bad idea. However, the problem for USA Today is this poll was conducted online by voluntary participants. The statistical significance of this is akin to posting a question to your buddies on Facebook and inferring the data on the country as a whole.
What I find more telling about the country’s true view on the term woke comes from standup comedians who make a living saying out loud what their audience is thinking. From Chris Rock to Dave Chappelle to Bill Burr to Neal Brennan, almost every progressive comedian is ridiculing woke ideology on progressive platforms like Netflix and Hulu. Republicans need to pay attention to this. Let me explain:
This is on point for why you should revisit the Scott Adams thing and understand the full context of matter.
Listen to Scott’s interviews with Jesus Hotep or the more recent one with Chris Cuomo.
You were perplexed about why Scott would say something so racially provocative. You were openly troubled given what you knew of him. That feeling SHOULD have guided you to seeking more understanding before speaking on it. Had you done your homework, listened to the full context of the podcast or his subsequent interview with Hotep Jesus instead of relying on media representations and the selective editing of his comments, you would have had been less condemning and seen common ground with one who is perhaps the most influential contributor in the area of personal growth and success.
So, please do your audience the courtesy of revisiting the matter with a clear understanding of what Scott was trying to do and his reframing of the how we should be dealing with racism. I agree with Cuomo, this is exactly the conversation we need to be having. Conservatives and, more importantly, all America can win when we take these steps.
You might not go so far as to agree openly with Scott’s hyperbolic comment nor even call for his un-cancelation. That is okay. It's unnecessary and, more importantly I think misses the point. Not even Scott is sorry his Dilbert strip was canceled. For him, it was worth the price for gaining free speech.
This might also be why you sensed some level of martyrdom in Scott’s actions. You might not be wrong. But that feeling should have also drove you to seeking more understanding before parroting misleading media representations. You have no excuse falling for that propaganda. I don't know why did. I can't read minds. If I were to guess, it was because the narrative painted by the media was a high-ground argument that aligned with your values and enabled you to score points with big media and everyone else who didn't understand the context and the greater issue. But, in doing so, you missed golden opportunity to really make a difference.
Scott’s response to all this wokism stuff is to point out the absurdity of it and teach how backward-looking it is. This is why his Dilbert cartoon has been so popular with professionals over 30 years -- young and old alike. He often uses hyperbole to draw attention to broken things (a technique Trump has also used to great effect). If all you’re focused on is the hyperbole, you’re missing a great big reservoir in persuasion. All the politics aside, this is the mistake many Trump critics make and a main reason for TDS. Adams, like Trump, is drawing your attention with to the issue using hyperbole so we WILL talk about it constructively and start thinking past the sale to forward-looking solutions.
Hyperbole is a tool to help get the process of critical thinking going. It stirs the pot. When one learns to feel the energy hyperbole causes, it moves us to action and releases us to think openly and see the field as it is seen by others as well as a host of other costs and benefits. Critical thinking is a skill. But some people are trapped in a bubble of bias and cognitive dissonance on an issue. Hyperbole can burst the bubble. We all do it trying to make a point. Those still trapped in bias and cognitive dissonance reveal it by attacking the hyperbole or the person who said it, but not the underlying argument itself.
For what it’s worth, Scott admits the reaction was stronger than he anticipated. He did not expect cancellation of his Dilbert strip. Nor is he complaining. He accomplished his objective by drawing attention to how broken things are with regard to how we’re tackling racism in America -- if you will hear the context. Context ALWAYS matters. On these two points, I am certain the two of you would agree.
But we need to stop throwing around the term so indiscriminately to label anything to the left of us. We risk alienating more moderate liberals if we lump everything they support in with the "woke" progressives. Just like many moderate conservative get offended when we are lumped in with the more radical on the right.