I feel like I’ve downed a bottle of crazy pills and am on the brink of an overdose. There’s something that’s been going on a for a while, and it seems like nobody recognizes this blatant pandering from faux intellectuals. I enjoy writing, but honestly, I’m motived to sit down at the keyboard when I can’t stop thinking about topics that nobody seems to be discussing. If I can just reach one reader to help them see what’s going on, that’s all I really care about.
Frankly, I’m a little disgusted because I don’t think I’m the only one who notices this topic we’re about to dive into. But you’ll never see a publication or independent writer or commentator discussing this because they’re most likely doing the same thing. I’m currently working on my next book, and it’s about how we’re manipulated on a daily basis, and this is a topic I feel like I need to put out there sooner rather than later.
The word “tribalism” gets tossed around a lot these days, but it’s mainly just a way to strawman any argument with someone we disagree with. Rather than having a rational discussion like adults, we can just accuse the other person of being a victim of their ideological groupthink and keep it moving. Yes, this is extremely common, but there is a very small minority of people who are actually attempting to be independent thinkers.
What I wanted to discuss is the fact that there are people who are actively taking advantage of the extreme polarization and tribalism on a daily basis. They’re playing people for fools for their own personal gain. This personal gain may not even be monetary, either. Some people purely get their rocks off with the attention and amount of social media engagement they receive by feeding into the confirmation bias of the group.
None of us like being played for a fool, so lets discuss the clear signs of the faux intellectuals playing into tribalism so we can all be on the lookout.
The Diagnosis
Humans are a pattern-seeking species. Unfortunately, this often leads to conspiratorial thinking or believing in the supernatural. But what we’re talking about today is a pattern that’s staring us right in the face that nobody seems to be talking about.
Something I’ve noticed for at least the last two years is how easy it is to spot these people of influence who either completely lack integrity and values, or their minds have done an epic job of self-deception. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt, and it’s quite possible these people have lied to themselves enough that they don’t even realize how full of shit they are.
So, what’s the diagnosis?
Look at the people you follow on social media or the commentators you watch. If you can take a list of social and political issues and instantly know where they stand on that group of issues, they’re full of shit.
Here’s an example list of questions:
Should critical race theory be taught in schools?
Should people get vaccinated?
Is a trans woman/man a man/woman?
These are only three example questions. But as you can see these are all completely different. One is about race, one is about COVID, and one is about trans people. We’re talking apples, oranges, and pineapples here.
Why in a million years would you be able to easily know where someone stands on each of those issues if I’ve never heard them talk about it before?
Well, it’s easy. These people have compromised principles. They know that where they stand on each of these issues will either get an applause from their tribe or get them shunned by the tribe.
If each of a person’s opinions are based on the reaction of the tribe, how in the hell could you consider them an independent thinker? This world is so complex and so many topics require an insane amount of nuance. None of us should ever be able to predict where someone stands on such different issues.
And you know what’s strange about those three questions I asked? Depending on who reads these questions, you’re thinking of different people. Some of you read those questions and thought of the “woke” crowd, and some of you thought of the “anti-woke”.
The only way you’re ever going to stop following these tribal grifters is to recognize that both sides are guilty of this. At the end of the day, you’re being taken advantage of and manipulated. They’re playing us like puppets, and nobody seems to care.
Let’s Get Into Some Examples
Alright, before moving forward, I’m going to be transparent about my bias. I’m more left-leaning, but I have plenty of opinions that would (and have) got me shunned by the tribe. Hell, I’ve been canceled by hundreds of thousands of strangers who are from my group. But with the following examples, I’m going to use some of the anti-woke but I see it on “my side” daily as well.
I think the best examples is people like Bret Weinstein and Jordan Peterson, but there are so many more of these people.
First off, let’s talk about why we listen to people. I love books on why we listen to certain people and not others or why we trust some people but not others. Some great books on these topics are Not Born Yesterday: The Science of Who We Trust and What We Believe by Hugo Mercier and Messengers: Who We Listen To, Who We Don't, and Why by Joseph Marks and Stephen Martin. If you want to stop being manipulated by people playing into your tribalism and confirmation bias, start with these books.
Anyways, let’s start with the fact that we listen to people we perceive as smart. Some of the smartest people we tend to not question are professors. Weinstein and Peterson instantly check this box. Yes, there are professors and experts who we’re extremely skeptical of, but we typically only put them under a microscope if they’re saying the opposite of what we already believe (see the work of Dan Kahan). But Truth Default Theory shows how by default, we trust, and that’s because it’s way more cognitive effort to question.
Weinstein and Peterson are great examples because let’s look at their claims to fame. Weinstein was a professor of biology at Evergreen who was the victim of cancel culture for speaking out against the “Day of Absence”, which is a racial thing, but being the biology guy he is, many also know him for his views on trans people. Then, there’s Peterson. While many will say that Peterson’s claim to fame is this self-help psychologist, that’s secondary to what put him on the map. Peterson only became a household name when he spoke out against a potential law in Canada that would force people to call other people by their preferred pronouns.
I think it’s important to note that I don’t necessarily disagree with the original arguments of these men or the points they were trying to make. But since then, it’s clear that narcissistic traits and/or monetary gain have come into play.
Again, think about those original three questions I asked. These two guys became household names due to their views on trans topics and race.
Now, they both won’t shut up about vaccines and are promoting vaccine hesitancy. And we’re not talking rational vaccine hesitancy. We’re talking conspiratorial thinking that’s being embraced by the tribe.
Like, hello?! Are you following me?!
Where they started and where they are now are completely different. There is absolutely no reason that before I saw anything from these two guys about vaccines, I already knew where they’d stand. This also goes for every topic surrounding measures to prevent the spread of COVID like masks, indoor dining, and everything else.
These are just two guys, but if you take five seconds to think about it, you could create a laundry list of people like this.
I have had authors on my podcast who have written about CRT and woke ideology in schools. Why on earth are their COVID views completely aligned with the tribe as well? I’ve seen a bunch of anti-CRT authors and people of influence do the same thing.
The fact that people follow these people and don’t take pause is absolutely baffling. How can you not sit there and think, “Wait a tick. Why is this person always telling me exactly what I want to hear?” It’s almost like falling for a psychic. And let’s not even get into the fact that nobody is questioning the fact that 90% of these “intellectuals” are taking hard stances on topics they have 0 expertise in. Or, in the case of Weinstein, he’s going against the scientific consensus to push conspiratorial thinking, which is beyond unethical.
As I mentioned before, it honestly feels like I’m going insane watching this happen. It’s no wonder people get scammed on a daily basis. Look at how we blindly follow people who play into our tribalism and confirmation bias.
I’m a fan of Jonathan Haidt, and I’ve read his book The Righteous Mind multiple times. It helped me understand that politically, there are certain values that groups hold. But we’ve reached a point where you can throw that right out of the car window while going 100 mph. There are no more “values” when it comes to these topics. It’s almost like people wait to see what the “other side” says and then takes the opposite stance and starts pushing it on the tribe.
So please stop being taken for a schmuck. Take a step back and recognize the fact that these people are playing you. They may believe their own bullshit. But on the other hand, they might be completely aware of the fact that their full of shit, but their ego loves the attention you give them and the money you throw at them to hear them speak or when you buy their books.
Something I think is important to discuss before we end here is the people who have recognized some of this insanity and have publicly denounced it. Years ago, I was a major Sam Harris fan, but I eventually stopped respecting some of his views and how he acts (that can be a whole different piece). But one thing I have to give Sam credit for is the fact that he is calling out his old friends for how ridiculous they’ve been throughout the pandemic. Sam Harris was/is good friends with people like Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson, but he’s had no problem publicly calling out their views on vaccines. But, he’s been a bit of a wuss because he’ll rarely ever call people out by name if he was/is friends with them.
Although I have plenty I dislike about Harris these days, on this (very) specific topic, he’s a good example. But for clarity, Harris can be as tribal as the next person even though he’ll deny it to his grave.
I’ll end this piece here, but this is something that I needed to discuss publicly to hopefully reach at least one of you. We all pride ourselves as independent thinkers, but on a daily basis, we’re being manipulated to the benefit of others. When I got sober, I was taught that the best people to keep around are the ones who call you out on your shit and aren’t afraid to disagree with you. Not only is that a good way to operate in your real-life relationships, but it’s a good rule of thumb to avoid the faux intellectuals playing into your tribalism and confirmation bias.
I’m currently writing a book about how we’re manipulated by the news, social media, technology, advertisers, and each other. It dives into the psychological history of manipulation, our biases, tribalism, and more.
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