The Retort

Problem Resolution

September 25th, 2009 by Steven Pittenger For The Retort

It seems no matter whom you talk to anymore, issues of strong moral or political importance are weighing heavily on most people’s minds. Opinions, ideologies, and sound bites are the latest trend; and people are talking so much that no one is listening.

So how do we go about solving all these problems that people are shouting about? Well, I’m certainly not going to tell you I know how to fix the economic crisis, nor do I have the perfect answer to gun control. What I can tell you is that the way we approach these issues is something that needs to change radically, and on that front I believe I have a pretty solid plan.

Firstly, civil discourse isn’t it. We have to stop thinking that people with over-priced educations and mediocre work histories can sit around and resolve an issue by discussing it. These “discussions” are nothing more than emotional masturbation designed for a group of people who like to play “my PhD is bigger than your PhD” - take that as you will.

We as a society need to develop a bias for action. While planning is important, it is almost always better to try something and fail than to endlessly rehash the same point from a hundred different angles.

Secondly, we need to recognize what is and is not a fact. Facts are not subjective, neither are they open to interpretation. Politicians and the media - especially the media - have become so adept at spinning information that even the most intelligent among us could be convinced of pretty much anything.

I believe Lewis Black said it best when he commented “You can’t show a video of a cat being run over by a Hummer and then say that the cat was trying to kill itself, and I’m going to need two or three days to find the note that he left.”

Reality is reality. Similarly, statistics, although not infallible do not hold more or less validity based on whether or not they support your side of the issue. I’m not saying we should never question methods and ways of obtaining data, but if 30 organizations run the same numbers and 29 get the same results we can be reasonably sure that the last company lacks credibility to say that their data is factual.

Next up, I believe we need to not only challenge, but directly confront the ignorance, apathy, and ambivalence plaguing our society. I actually had someone tell me “I have the right to be ignorant” once. I thought about it and later realized that that was an untrue statement.

Her ignorance was hurting society as a whole by being spread to her children, by impacting the way she dealt with others and by creating the concept that ignorance isacceptable. We as a society seem almost blissfully entitled to our ignorance at times. It’s frightening and not something that can continue.

Apathy is also a big frustration for me on a personal level. We as a society tend to have unrealistic expectations when it comes to solving problems. We want resolutions so long as we’re not asked to do anything, pay for anything, or give up anything.

We just want to sit around and complain and expect others to make things better. We need to tell people that if they can’t get off their backsides and contribute to the solution, then they don’t get a say in how it unfolds.

We also need to challenge cynics who say that just because a plan isn’t perfect and all encompassing it is bad or bad for us. Truth be told, perfection is a long way off for any political, moral, or ideological system, but we have to work with what we have. We have to take steps forward even if they are small.

A wise man once said “It’s better to light a single candle than curse the darkness.” Finally we need to relinquish our selfishness and sense of entitlement. We have a very strong sense of the word “mine” in this country.

We are very aware of what is ours. We feel like we should be entitled to it because we worked hard, or because someone else worked hard, or maybe because we’re good people. We see it as unfair and unjust when someone wants to take something of ours.

However, expecting life to be fair because you’re a good person is like expecting a bull not to charge you because you’re a vegetarian. If we would all be willing to give a little more, and detach ourselves from things that really only serve to bolster our egos through improving status, we might find that everyone has a better life, not perfect, but better.

I can only imagine that one day these things that all seem very simple to me, are going to be a standard practice of problem solving and working solutions. In the meantime, I hope we all stop and take a long hard look at ourselves and realize that they way we are doing things now has had and will continue to have a lasting negative impact on us all.