The other side is not dumb Why rural America voted for Trump

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The Other Side is Not Dumb Why Rural America Voted for Trump
Summaries
In his article, The “Other Side” Is Not Dumb, Sean Blanda seeks to attack the notion of people wanting to be right all the time while disregarding the idea that there could be a side or an opinion that is better or that can counter their stance. Everyone wants to have people who think and have the same belief system as themselves. Well, Blanda believes that such a mindset robs people of the opportunity to have honest discussions where each side is gifted a chance to share their viewpoint. He explains that having a false-consensus bias only helps to convince a small group of people they are right. It helps to create small groups of people who consider themselves as the side with the correct answers. While in such an environment, everyone else is wrong and is either crazy or stupid to have a different stand on an issue. Well, Blanda is direct in his assertion that this “this holier-than-thou” attitude and approach to things is counterproductive.
For most people, everyone who dismisses their point or takes an opposing stand is an outsider. Additionally, as Blanda explains, these people are never given a chance to defend their positions because they are considered as either hateful, enemies of progress, or individuals unworthy of a debate or discussion forum. But, he is urging people to move on from this mindset because it is retrogressive. It only leads to groups that sing praises to each other and never objectively deal with issues in society. Blanda also points a finger at the media which he believes plays a crucial role in shaping people’s minds and eventually leads them to like-minded individuals. While living in such a cocoon, Blanda explains that people are selective with the information that gets to them. Well, this happens at the expense of the truth which becomes a secondary factor. He ends his article by asking people to consider the other side of the debate and to have a keen ear for what is said by those in an opposing side.
In Robert Leonard’s Why Rural America Voted for Trump, he handles a topic that most liberals may not want to read. For most liberals, Trump should not have been president. However, as Leonard explains, he is the right man for the job, and Mrs. Clinton did not stand a chance against him. Well, where does this disconnect between the conservatives and liberals start? Leonard notes that it begins in the homes of both liberals and conservatives. On one side, the conservatives believe “in hard work, family, the military and cops, and they know that abortion and socialism are evil.” Their views towards liberals are that they are dangerous, misguided, and hateful. On the other hand, liberals believe conservatives do not understand that the world has changed. Their belief in a woman having the right to choose to abort or not is informed by their goal to embrace the changing times. Neither group understands each other’s political inclinations nor tries to, and Leonard explains that this is the sole reason why the two can never attain common ground.
However, Leonard explains that there are some cultural differences that cu...