Sam Harris - The Religion of Identity Politics

Sam Harris elucidates perfectly the problem of using Identity Politics in argumentation.This has been excerpted from Sam Harris' latest podcast. See below for the source:
www.samharris.org/podcast/ite...
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[@guybramwells]

I love Ben Stillers logic on this.

[@jesperburns]

+JesseSam his self has acknowledged that when talking about BLM.Something along the lines of "I don't know if the cops were called for someone who looks like Ben Stiller or not so whatever they arrest me for, I'll protest it when it's appropriate, so not when there's guns on me" (paraphrasing)

[@CatAtomic99]

I hear you. I backed Larry David in the primaries, and really hoped he'd win and maybe bring Ben Stiller here into his cabinet.

[@watteau6646]

ha ha good one

[@watteau6646]

Alec Baldwin might still bring Ben into his cabinet

[@Warriorpend2]

OMG

[@toekneebeeears]

I don't always agree with Sam Harris but, truer words were never spoken.

[@restedfizztraitorcompany6452]

I don't agree with you but I agree with you.

[@toekneebeeears]

Chart Buster Good thing I used the word not "always".

[@frankdrebin7949]

How can you not always agree with Sam? How can you disagree with facts?

[@JapanJohnny2012]

Toxic-Pop i rarely agree with him but identity politics does demonstrably suck. most of the most bigoted comments i've heard about disabled people have been uttered by feminists and rjws, because they're so self-engrossed that they fail to recognize the currency of common decency that is far more widespread than they could ever admit or accept.

[@coltonthedrummer]

+Frank Drebin I agree with the facts that Sam speaks (obviously, they are facts and I only deny reality when I'm defending flat-earth theories). What I do disagree with Sam is many of the conclusions he arrives at using those facts. I hope that answered your question "How can you not always agree with Sam."

[@kolyadante1728]

Sam Harris: "Reason should not be coloured by tribalistic identity." A significant portion of the comments: "Sam Harris votes democrat and has said mean things about Trump, so clearly he is wrong."

[@IndependentManSpeaks]

Yep, do they even get the irony?

[@5saMan6]

Well said

[@und3rgroundman865]

You are aware that Harris's basic points here are laughably naive and come out of a philosophical theory (logical positivism/atomism) that was conclusively shown to be false the best part of a century ago.

[@MorphingReality]

irony is about as foreign a concept to the general public as the dialectic in 2016 :/

[@kolyadante1728]

UND3RGROUND MAN Being as I am not a philosopher, no, I haven't the faintest clue what defunct mumblings of ancient sages you have decided Sam Harris is espousing. Furthermore, and this part is especially important, historical philosophy is a giant waste of the time it took to argue it out, the time it took to write it down, and the time it took YOU to learn about it. The popular condemnation of empirical reductionism didn't stop it from leaving all other philosophies dry relics gathering dust and embarrassing librarians the world over. The only useful writings of any non-empirical philosophies could more accurately be dubbed rhetoric and their authors set to work describing that instead.

[@honestjohn6418]

Sam Harris is a laser beam of common sense

[@franksanders9638]

You *would* think it would be common sense, wouldn't you? Yet it actually seems uncommon.

[@rogerfvb]

Using reason has never been common.

[@doombybbr]

common sense is flawed, what this guy is using is logic - not common sense.

[@bendyamin86]

Not anymore.

[@YaFunklord]

Sam Harris is a racist shithead who makes a buck by talking about common sense. For an enlightened view, look elsewhere.

[@SamuelAging]

How is it possible that one man can consistently crush it over and over and over on nearly every topic of which he speaks? Sam keep doing what you're doing.

[@lSomeRandomGuyl]

Ikr

[@liesdamnlies3372]

Holy shit. Sam Harris has a podcast? You mean I can just listen to him talk for hours? Excellent.

[@cobol528]

The "Waking Up" podcast. Excellent stuff.

[@vidgami46]

I've long been confused about one stance being so predictive of others. I'm very pro-gun, but also want green energy. I'm anti-immigration, but also pro-choice.

[@notkeatoncurtice6242]

I have the exact same views and the fact that one view gives away everything else has been troubling

[@andysimmons851]

Get out of my head, Charles

[@fusionriff]

Porridge - If the "he" you are referring to is Sam Harris, you are wrong. Harris holds a somewhat pro-gun position.

[@vidgami46]

Sam thoroughly explains his views on guns here: www.samharris.org/blog/item/the-riddle-of-the-gun Don't have the time to read it all, but he is an owner, and trains regularly.

[@vidgami46]

tustinn rent Why pro-gun: People shouldn't fear them as they're just inanimate objects, and there's little to no correlation between levels of gun control and their illegal use. It's obviously a cultural/societal issue, but because politicians and the media jump to it being about race (specifically Latino and black) it's difficult to talk about. Why own them: 1. Fun to shoot 2. Protection 3. Collector's value

[@aclyrics61]

I certainly and sincerely wish we had a million more 'Sam Harris's'. Society, culture, and civilization will progress and develop at a much more faster rate with individuals like him who are eloquent, critical, intuitive, and insightful in their thinking.

[@philipjameskennedyonemanba7999]

Required watching for all human beings

[@NujabesGaming]

This is the reason why website like chans (most infamously 4chan in the past) have shined and produced the more intellectual conversations. For they were anonymous, you had no identity. So the only merit you had, as an anonymous shitposter, was the reasoning, facts and links of your post. However, claming out that identity has no merit, AT ALL, is silly at best.

[@FHBStudio]

He stated up front that when talking about the facts, identity doesn't matter. He's not saying it doesn't matter at all ever.

[@supernova743]

Identity doesn't change facts, it can be used to check those facts but they will never ever change. That's what this video is

[@NujabesGaming]

FreeHomeBrew He's not stating it ouright, but he's certainly implying it later on.

[@FHBStudio]

NujabesGaming What he stated later on was that if your life's experience or identity is relevant to the facts that it is valid to bring it up. Like his example that if someone makes a generalisation in which you're wrongly included. "All catholics don't believe in hell", if you're a catholic and you believe in hell, then that is a relevant bit of information. Even if it's just to change the statement to "Some catholics don't believe in hell" or something.

[@EnervatedSociety]

I once had an intellectual conversation on 4chan. We discussed the intricacies of fapping to traps whilst eating Cheetos in your moms basement with the latest by Skrillex.

[@TehOldGamer]

"The color of your skin isn't relevant information, unless you are White and then it is most detestable" - Sam Harris 2017

[@asandwell]

Please tell me that was just a sarcastic comment he was making about the Left. If so, then that sounds like him.

[@stm7810]

Great video, well animated, I used all my points to share this on minds.

[@IndependentManSpeaks]

Thanks!

[@sciWraith]

I had already watched his whole podcast, and this is a great part to have identified and cast additional light on. Thanks Independent!

[@kantraxoikol6914]

no, this is the time you point us to the full podcast instead of a 5 sentence clip. but NONE of you do that, ever....you just steal 10 minutes of fame by reposting a tiny portion of it with no source info. so all in all....*DISLIKED* not to mention Sam harris is a cartoon character, so you felt you had to beef it up somehow instead of just showing sam harris.

[@conquerandwin]

This was a good one. I've always thought that every time I hear someone deny climate science simply because they're on the right. Even when they are very intelligent.

[@travis5706]

What software did you use to make the animations?

[@AlexReynard]

Thanks for helping spread this idea with a well-made animation. What he said here can't be emphasized enough. In order to know anything truly, we have to be humble enough to take ourselves out of the equation. What we want to be true has no relevance to truth. Who we are is no relevance to truth. The repercussions of something being true have no relevance to its truth. And no one's identity gives them the magical superpower to know better than everyone else combined.

[@1bbbbbaaaaa]

the fact that you can predict how someone feels about an issue based on their position on another isn't simply tribalism or illogic. most of the positions on various issues are probably guided by overarching principles or ideologies, which i think suggests that more consistent logic is being applied in multiple contexts. a conservative, for instance, is guided by principles (e.g. limited gov't, more personal liberty) and it would be hypocritical (or at least undermine the principle) to only apply that in some arenas. aside from that, everything else is spot on and we desperately need strong, influential opposition to the illogic and injustice that identity politics conceive.

[@MikkoHaavisto1]

You might have brought up the most essential 5 minutes Harris has podcasted! Great choice, I wish everyone would watch this. I'll be sure to link this video whenever I see it relevant.

[@DuEzkerreraKanala]

You'd be correct, of course, if he'd engaged in any way with the actual topic of 'identity politics'.

[@fkingmetal1929]

Brilliant! (Anybody know what this software is?)

[@lSomeRandomGuyl]

Darude sandstorm

[@PaulLadendorf]

As a Republocrat, I can tell you that this makes perfect sense!

[@oralboytoy]

Gross! Smart people vote Demican.

[@alanroberts9179]

Back in the 70s there was a thing that was called the line item veto which would enable a president to pick and choose from a certain bill that was going to be passed. That was shot down

[@MRCAB]

What episode?

[@danielhebard1865]

This is the truest video I've ever seen. After hearing and being involved in numerous arguments and discussions with both liberals and conservatives, I came to this exact conclusion. Neither side is completely correct, and this tribalism will be the end of America if we don't reign it in. Facts are just that, and identity politics has no place in the mind of a free-thinking, intelligent individual. Your personal experience is irrelevant if there is data suggesting your experience doesn't fit the norm. Anecdotal evidence should not and cannot be used to support an argument, and partisan politics shouldn't be used either. Somebody high up is trying to divide the country and steal the American dream from under our noses. Wake up, America.

[@retro-meister]

Sam is correct that facts do not care about what your identity is. He is also correct in suggesting that people who are emotionally invested in an issue are more likely to distort the facts by being biased, and this can be an issue. However, Sam's big issue is failing to recognise that political debates tend to be about what we 'ought' to do rather than just what the facts are. Facts themselves are simply statements about reality that do not hold any intrinsic value about how we ought to behave or organise as humans. When it comes to issues like immigration/abortion/any other political debate, what we ought to do is strongly subjective, such that two individuals can disagree with each other even if they both agree on the related facts/statistics. When examining facts and conducting reasoning to determine what we ought to do, we always have to think about what things we value and what end goals we have in mind, which is always linked to our identity. Some people fundamentally value different things to others/have different ends in mind to others. Consequently, they will make different inferences about what we ought to do from examining facts than others, and I do not think that there is anything wrong with this - we just have to be conscious of it.

[@TheSm1thers]

I wouldn't say it's that subjective when we can look at issues like immigration and abortion, then weigh up the pros and cons to see what approaches on these issues would be the most objectively good for the country as a whole rather than your own individual identity. I think Sam is saying we should try to look at issues without bias, but admits at the start that bias is everywhere.

[@JoelAdamson]

Yeaaaaaah, the problem is he's preaching to the choir: people who subscribe to identity politics disagree with him on "facts are facts and it doesn't matter who you are." They're coming from a different perspective, and they're wrong, but all that matters to them is forcing their view on people. They don't care about facts.

[@nathanforrest3483]

Identity politics and social media are both killing the world.

[@rogerfvb]

I'm glad there is still a voice for reason. Too bad most people have a hard-on for raving and hating and complaining and none of those idiots give a shit about stopping for 1 second and thinking honestly about what truth is.

[@w00tbassman]

Animation tip: Do the mouth movements two frames before the sound hits. The brain reads it as happening at the same time!

[@IndependentManSpeaks]

Not possible, stock animation program, voice sync is out of my control.

[@w00tbassman]

great vid btw.

[@Darkphantaria]

Identity is not irrelevant when it comes to how culture and structures of power treat you.

[@AlexReynard]

It can be though. Because if you are saying, 'As [X], my lived experience tells me this...', and that conflicts with what the best overall statistics show to be true, then at best you have only given your experiences as an individual, which may not be shared by any number of other people. At worst, you are representing your confirmation bias as a fact. As in, if you've been told your whole life you will be a victim of systematic oppression, chances are you will look for signs this is true whether they are there or not. People with paranoid mental illness never run out of reasons to feel persecuted, even if no one's actually persecuting them. I think we all underestimate the ability of the average 'sane' person to see conspiracy patterns in random events. And if believing in such a conspiracy is tied to your sense of self-identity? Holy shit, watch out.

[@TripleA90000]

I think thats one of those instances. If you are making a factual claim about your own lived experiences, and how you have been treated because of your identity, thats fine. Now if your talking statistics, then your personal experience is really only good for proving that it does or can happen, it confirms nothing about the prevalence of a certain issue. Say racism for example. If we're discussing whether or not racism is a prevalent issue in america, then you need things like data and statistics. A personal experience (otherwise known as anecdotal evidence), can only tell you that it has happened to some people.

[@hahaherby]

I swear I thought I was going crazy - it’s like everywhere you look people want to come together yet finding more ways to separate each other.

[@Idalych]

Identity politics creates motivated reasoning, leaving the mind susceptible to propaganda.

[@malcolmnicoll1165]

Q:Why do so many leftists trust the mainstream media? A: Narcissism Great talk as always. Love Sam. Thanks for posting.

[@AndreasDevig]

You just played into identity politics man.

[@blues_guitar_string3733]

Excellent analysis of why Identity Politics, so widespread these days, is wrong. And its relation to "Tribalism" is brought out so well.

[@proudkuffar9890]

I love the way Sam Harris categorize identity politics as religion. According to Sam, everything that is evil is religion though identity politics have nothing to do with fairy tales.

[@johnzik1]

One million upvotes! They should teach those things at school.

[@mynamemylastname1835]

As a one legged, anorexic, albino, midget, I feel under represented in politics and the Oscars. NOW GIVE ME MY FREE STUFF!!! 👿

[@Adronomics]

you have definitely earned my sub! I look forward to more. thank you

[@FX_productions]

Sam is intelligent, a clear thinker and a good communicator. He therefore attracts more than his fair share of criticism from people who will never be any of these things. Keep them coming Sam!

[@leetledrummerboy]

Thank you, sincerely, for breaking down what should be obvious so well.

[@mynamemylastname1835]

As a left handed, albino, pansexual, one legged, albino, midget woman of color, I agree with this.

[@Morphixx]

1:19 Typo - "Indentity" instead of "Identity"

[@alexryder4331]

To abuse intersectional theory is heinous. To deny it is to deny sociology

[@earlgreystoke3324]

Okay...intesectional "theory" is absolute twaddle...

[@paxtonlynch1251]

I didn't know that Flo from the Progressive commercials knew Sam Harris.

[@theempoleon78]

What he's referring to are common fallacies that people think are ok to commit usually because they're unaware of them or intend to mislead.

[@aim33b0t]

The podcast was excellent. That + the animation was UBER awesome

[@oterdverg]

Depends on what the main principle is. If it's less government, the answer is yes gun ownership, yes immigration, abortion it depends on when life begins, climate change depends on the evidence

[@myself2noone]

The great thing about comments is after you watch this video you can come down here and read what he actually said.

[@MrTlong2010]

When he said "abortion" and pulled out the baby, I got scared for a second XD

[@EmperorsNewWardrobe]

“Reason should not be coloured by tribalistic identity” Can a dictator temporarily come along to tattoo this sentence onto our dna code?

[@247custard]

We do need to be careful not to misuse the concept of identity politics. If someone says "black people do not experience discrimination" and a black man responds"I am black and I do experience discrimination on a weekly basis", this is NOT identity politics. It falls under Sam's Catholic analogy. It is still important to understand other people's experiences.

[@thewallstreetjournal5675]

It's difficult to see how anyone could take this religion seriously without being raised in it or going to college.

[@Sarah-gk5yi]

The vast majority of people I've met that lean right have a diverse number of opinions on government policies, religion, and culture that is almost nonexistent on the left and in left leaning communities.

[@Jack458111]

I like how flo from the auto insurance ads made a cameo

[@Azhucabomb]

People have educated on both sides to make their opinion a part of their identity. People need to be educated to challenge their opinions all the time.

[@TheRealBlueSwan]

Yes, this is key! Always look to challenge your beliefs! Humans have an innate tendency to always try to confirm our beliefs (known as confirmation bias). This is terrible and causes us to become illformed and frankly stupid. Information bubbles are awful for democracy. I am a progressive liberal (albeit a pragmatic one, hence most people will view me as a centrist of sorts), but I deliberately seek out information from conservative sources to get the other side of the story. Unfortunately, it seems like a lot of conservative media outlets and sites in the US these days have become paranoia-infested conspiracy-nonsense. That is a real tragedy for democracy. We need well reasoned arguments from all sides. For good conservative content I have to look to the weekly standard, the wall street journal or intellectuals like Jordan Peterson these days. Or even the occasional show on Foxnews if I want to know the current conservative talking points. Avoid the likes of Infowars, Conservapedia, Limbaugh, Hannity, etc. You only become stupider from seeking them out. I teach political science (high school level) in Denmark and make a point out of always challenging the views of my students, regardless of whether I happen to agree with their views or not, for that very same reason.

[@estprr]

Great video. Would you consider doing Hitchens, Dennett or Dawkins? A Four Horseman series would be awesome.

[@IndependentManSpeaks]

Ask and ye shall receive imgur.com/NXxnTXx

[@silentmobius9252]

Eastern orthodox christian here. Strange world we are living in when i agree with Sam Harris more often than not.

[@ShankarSivarajan]

0:43 I have a theory about how all the various issues Sam mentions (guns, climate-change, immigration and abortion) are related: Do you believe data can be manipulated, or simply fabricated out of thin air, for political purposes, and common-sense ought not to be discarded? If you do, you probably believe that law-abiding citizens being able to defend themselves is good, since criminals don't obey laws, and would get guns even if they're banned; people can deal with slightly warmer winters, and the government uses climate-change as an excuse to harass businesses and citizens; immigrants/refugees _can_ be criminals and rapists, despite what some might have you believe; and finally, permitting unrestricted pre-natal infanticide is not a moral imperative and, barring life-threatening complications, ought to be considered homicide. The same reasoning extends to false rape-accusations: if a person can accuse someone of a heinous crime anonymously, and without consequence to themselves even if/when proven to be lying, they will do so. This is a disservice to actual victims, who would actually be better served if they insist on imposing the harshest possible punishment for those who deliberately lie and claim victim-hood, and when caught in their lie, provide reasonable cause for the claims of genuine victims to be doubted. (Or do you believe that all rape-accusations are true?)

[@SLAPPEDbyAhat]

The key to climate change is not temperature, but water. Sea elevation will rise, and many of our cities will suddenly be in the wrong place. Patterns of rainfall will shift and suddenly our primary agricultural areas are in the wrong place. Humanity will survive, I have no doubt, but there will be a painful transition in which living standards fall for most of the world for a generation or so (assuming no action is taken to mitigate climate change). This is not the first time such a thing has happened, read "Collapse" by Jared Diamond for examples of this on a smaller scale throughout history. The difference is that this time it will be much more global.

[@halflucan]

*Do you believe data can be manipulated, or simply fabricated out of thin air, for political purposes, and common-sense ought not to be discarded?* Yes, but. The key is to look for unbiased studies with a good reputation. The problem is that people will often dismiss the credibility of a source in order to make the facts seam less true, then use a more biased source on their side to make an argument seam 50/50 when it isn't (I'm confident that Climate change denial is going the same route of people denying that smoking caused Lung Cancer or that washing your hands in hospitals didn't affect mortality rates) *people can deal with slightly warmer winters* As explained above. Increased sea levels = flooding. I don't think people can wrap their head around how much ice there is and how that can have macro effects on real (local) places if it was to melt. *since criminals don't obey laws, and would get guns even if they're banned* There needs to be some measure of gun control (but any attempt is seen as the government being "tyrannical"). Police need to have better training, the public needs mental health checks and yeah, some crazies will get a gun if they really want to have one, but the mass shootings with people buying guns with their parents banks cards... Thats fucked up. *and the government uses climate-change as an excuse to harass businesses and citizens* Tax's on cigarettes are both a way to make money and to discourage a harmful behavior. All major car manufacturers are looking into electric technology, would they pursue it with the same vigor if they wasn't being harassed by the government? *immigrants/refugees can be criminals and rapists* Yep, i agree with that *permitting unrestricted pre-natal infanticide is not a moral imperative and, barring life-threatening complications, ought to be considered homicide* Why is life valuable? Why is murder bad? Its a bold statement to say "ought to be considered homicide" but just don't see it as very rational. Murder is sad because you deprive someone future positive experiences who already has experiences and you destroy families in the process. I find it hard to extend that level of severity to something that has yet to take a breath in this world (there should be limits and there are) but to say that the instant an egg is fertilised, that its wrong to terminate it from that point on, thats absurd. You could stop all car deaths by setting the speed limit to 10MPH, but we don't do that. We accept some level of death for convenience and because driving is fun. This was fun.

[@elliemay1748]

Identity Politics mostly happens when you don't have equality. People who say identity politics shouldn't matter, sweep under the rug the fact that inequality exists, and no I'm not talking about equal outcomes. I'm talking about things like transgender bans in the military, bathroom bills, how half the states in America didn't allow gay marriage and many still have major limitations, how private companies can deny women having birth control covered on their health insurance because it goes against their religious beliefs, the right's constant attempts to abolish Roe v Wade and shut down Planned parenthood, the Religious Liberty Task Force that only helps christians, etc. Identity politics for these issues are necessary, because the laws that exist are biased. These are facts. If your gender, sexual preference, religion, or identity didn't matter, why do we still have these laws and issues? Practice what you preach, and stop considering identity politics irrelevant until we actually do have equal rights in this country. Because until then, it will be necessary in some instances. In order to get rid of identity politics, you would have to get rid of political parties.

[@nefaristo]

As a white Italian male, I agree.

[@gussetma1945]

Without identity politics 90% of the Democratic Party platform would disappear. Il Maestro

[@SlothDemon101]

what a stupid statement haha

[@georgelux126]

It DOES seem to be how they want to reach out to people. Nothing wrong with identity politics as longs as the identity you choose is human.

[@ken-vo]

keep up the good animation work. do more please

[@takunveritas]

my only issue with this is that all should submit to what the 'best science' prescribes. I think most people watching this can agree that peer review boards are biased and universities are heavily left leaning.

[@georgeclarence7313]

Still quite possibly one of the most important clips on the internet.

[@Ken-ki]

Yes, it might be true that a lot of factors can be irrelevant like skin color, still when you believe in a religion that dictates the right way to do something, or you agree with a certain way society should deal with inequality and or whatever, things get difficult. You still have to consider that, while there is not a 100% predictability on how each individual might think; there are still a lot of cultural and biological factors that inform our relation to the world, our actions and our views, and those factors can be shared by more than one person or group. That being sayd I totally agree that we shouldn't decide on behalf of belonging to a specific group, but instead on reason and argument. Regardless of my nationality, political views or values, the color of my skin etc. I recognize this is no time to keep fighting against each other on an unproductive struggle, the whole planet will enter a time of crisis in the next decades and it is a great oportunity to start working together, or at least sit down and argument calmly, for a different if not better world, I can see a lot of people is disenchanted with the way thing are going regardless of their political views and I still can't understand why we keep scratching the surface of differences when the profundity of the problems we face as a species is still misunderstood. Thank you for your video.

[@MrSidney9]

Great Animation. keep it up

[@ddd-ly3rv]

the malaise of intrusion, only you're not allowed to feel anything. just intrusion.

[@nyxi2189]

literally every idea i have for youtube or video games is being done. insane. everyone must have the same simplistic ideas that i do

[@AnonymousAnonymous-xy9tz]

I really like what he's saying here. I disagree with him about a lot of things like he doesn't legitimize trans-people and he doesn't agree with safe zones, which is fine. But I really agree with him about Identity politics.

[@doombybbr]

2:03 unless the argument is about what people can be, in which case who you are is an example that you can use.

[@WesternWhiteWolf]

I don't agree with Harris on a lot of things - especially religion - but he's right on the money here.

[@PJSM94]

Religious.. So, an unreasonable person.

[@TheAshube9]

This is mostly true, but what sam misses here is that identity can very well be relevant when talking about moral questions. There are some experiences that socially happen only to certain groups of people based on their group identity, and can only be best understood by them. In that sense, their opinion about the morality of certain issues from which they are suffering is more valuable than the opinion of one which "doesn't know what it's like".

[@Procrastinater]

When the debate if social science is or is not a science, morphs into if all science, in fact everything... is social science. Seriosuly, we need to give social science exactly the credit it deserves, which is next to none at all. You can write books as detailed and meaningful about the structure of fish society and behavior as you could any identity group or social interaction, and it scientific merit would be close to the same. Someone making loose claims based on logical fallacies, backed up by "shut up, agree with this or you are X"

[@MikeBarbarossa]

Flo had a baby?

[@BleakVision]

Sorry, I am not going to take the high road, when other groups attack my group viciously.

[@m_b_lmackenzie4510]

This sounds completely basic in any discourse however, almost every one of us makes this mistake in some way. Great video, thank you.

[@TheWhitebuffalo48]

Was that Flo the insurance lady at 1:45?

[@johnsmith3085]

Thanks for posting this, mate.

[@fusionriff]

The more Sam Harrises, the better. In Independent Man’s wonderfully animated video here, CGI Harris diagnoses in precise terms the world’s worst malady: lack of critical thinking. Let me add to Sam’s observations: Humans aren’t wired for critical thinking. Sloppy thinking is more like it. Fortunately, there’s a fairly simple three-step formula for becoming a critical thinker (actually living out the formula is much more difficult than comprehending it). First, we must acknowledge how much of a mess our mind is. It’s a black-and-white fantasyland in there-refuge from a world that is almost all gray. We must accept the idea-the fact-that we are wrong (or uninformed) about way more than we think we are, and that we do not give honest consideration to other viewpoints nearly as much as we think we do. Second, Lose the Labels! The more one uses labels, the less one is able to think critically. The words we use shape the way we think, and slapping sloppy political labels on people and ideas (especially on ourselves and our own ideas) renders a sloppy view of reality. No proposition is understood better with labels than without them. Carry out steps one and two, and the third step will come easily: Check out of the echo chamber, which is labels all the way down. This entails ditching our political party affiliation and our ideologies. A critical thinker strips each proposition of its attachments to the labeled parties and ideologies so it stands in his mind as a politically denuded idea prepared for impartial examination. We can be sure our examination is impartial because we are no longer beholden to any party or ideology (nor to any other individual, for that matter). Carl Jung said, “People don’t have ideas; ideas have people.” There may be no reversing that state of mind completely, but slamming shut the political party/echo chamber door behind us is a good start.

[@lessevdoolbretsim]

It's pretty cool that ole Flo decided to let you put her in this video.

[@KillaKlump]

One thing that pisses me is that on hand you have Bernie Sanders saying we should move beyond identity politcs but on the other hand you have idiots like Samantha Bee and her shitty Tv show saying identity politics is a euphemism for civil rights and that its racist to be against it. It blows my mind the way people will turn anything into a race issue. We need more like minded people like Sam Harris to use their platform to speak against this bull shit.

[@honestjohn6418]

Excellent animation.

[@brucebooher2288]

@2:02 Bingo!!!! That is the forgotten key to all our current debates. Something SO simple is so profound! "The nature of any arguement is that its validity doesn't depend on Who You Are". I want that on a tee shirt to wear to all the snowflake gatherings.

[@KurtVogel88]

There is a significant genetic component to people's political views. There is also very frequently a connection between a person's appearance and their political views. Physiognomy is real.

[@TheTank0matic]

Goddammit, Independent Man, I thought you actually had Sam Harris narrate this video.

[@IndependentManSpeaks]

He did mate, me and Sam are tight as bro.

[@6Eulogy6]

I am Jean Vince and disliked the people who disliked this video.

[@tinyguy9398]

1:38 Hey, it's Flo!!!

[@raspy32official47]

The ethos behind identity politics is at odds with individualism. Phrases like 'non-binary' and 'gender-neutral' and gender being performative. As if people weren't already straight, gay, bi, trans, queer, etc. before Judith Butler came along. If trans people are just people, why even bring it up? Just leave it at that. Just let transpeople be, you know, _individuals_ . Identity politics and performative theory are such fanciful and trivial concepts anyway. People who push identity rhetoric should feel so blessed they live in a part of the world where they're allowed the time, luxury and freedom to speak about such frivolous things. Identity politics is more the product of a certain lifestyle than an it is relevant to common human welfare.

[@homelesszombieapocalypse6622]

Thanks for speaking the insufficiently understood truth.Intriguingly, I also (independently) have theorized that Identity Politics is actually a fundamentalist religion. Consider, that Identity Politics involves fanaticism, is oriented to believing in "original sin" in white people (whites, but not those of other races, are often considered "guilty until proven innocent" as is reflected in the dismissive and contemptuous comment "check your white privilege"), is oriented to the idea that one has to be "born again" (eg, one has to "awaken" to one's white privilege, or become aware of oppression) , and like many fundamentalist religions, it is extremely literalistic (superficial) and delusional. I think Identity Politics began with good intentions....but...as the saying goes...the road to hell is paved with good intentions. The original intent was good, it was to bring awareness to oppression. However, the result has become a philosophy or even a religion, which is shallow, full of dualism, racism, double standards, highly presumptuous thinking, which perversely glorifies victimization, and gives people status based on how victimized they are. Identity Politics engages in wholesale dismissal of people based on superficial characteristics. Moreover, Identity Politics as it takes hold of whole communities, can produce mass delusion and gaslighting in the way that we find in religious cults, and demonize reasonable people with legitimate concerns, by casually dismissing them as racists, haters, etc. The tendency of adherents of Identity Politics is to believe they no longer have to produce intelligent arguments, they can simply rout their opponents with ad hominem attacks. I address the social dysfunction created by Identity Politics in my film, Homeless Zombie Apocalypse. kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3eToqShg7agkJY

[@osityan]

"The facts are whatever they are" So when the member of the medical community from the 1930s to the 1950s recommended smoking, everyone was right in believing them. lol

[@sanadbenali6993]

we need to go deeper this should be part of a playlist part of a channel that covers this

[@PaulLadendorf]

My problem with Sam is that he's too sure of himself. Socrates would rip him a new one.

[@jrcartwright21390]

No matter how intelligent a video I’ve just watched, the associated KZbin comments section almost never fails to instill a distinct sense of hopelessness in me. The stupidity of so much of what is being said in the comments of this video is so stark it’s truly frightening. If not even those who watch Sam Harris content can be relied on to be reasonable human beings, then what does that suggest of the rest of humanity? Ugh. Get your shit together, people. Try harder in attempting to offer intelligent responses to yet another perfectly reasoned and articulated argument from such a brilliant thinker. Try to envision your comment being turned into an animation of this sort, and you’ll quickly realize how far short you’ve fallen of where Sam’s argument stands. Much of what you people are mustering would sound like the delusional ramblings of a child by comparison if your arguments assumed this format, and that should reveal something rather depressing to you. Learn how to think and formulate better arguments. Jesus...

[@TyroneBiggums789]

Preach 😢

[@fjhumphries]

yes! specific issues, that is it. The environment should be everyone's issues. The environment is not a political statement we need it for food , air, water = life. Short term gains ahead of long term disasters is the wrong way.

[@WgWilliams]

I am curious as to what Harris would have argued about abortion and the scientific facts? A fetus is an "individual human being" scientifically. "Individual" meaning has their own unique full DNA profile. "Human" meaning has their full human chromosome profile including sex. "Being" meaning a living entity. To claim this individual human being as innocent, meaning; this fetus has not committed any crime or moral injustice, would also be a logical fact. So a vaild question in regard to the known empirical and logical facts is to ask; "Is it morally right to willfully end an innocent human beings right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?" Values without acknowledgement of facts can never be applied in a trustworthy means. In court trials, the facts of the case determine if our laws built on our values are being administrated within their intent. Can there be a coherent following of the spirit of the law while discarding the facts of the case? Without such facts being disclosed, one should not expect our value of justice and individual rights to follow.

[@dandales9003]

This is sbsolutely true about people who are on the right,those of us on the left however are never wrong .

[@dandales9003]

Just kidding.

[@steveharper8451]

Most of his statements are true. The issue I have with his theoretical orientation is the assumption that people and life are a collection of facts. Humans are more than this, especially, when we consider the dynamic of human behavior as it relates within all types of various sub-culture groups. We can't just boil human sociology down to science because there are still undefined forces in the universe. To say otherwise indicates the collective consciousness is at its max, which history has proven is false. To define the not yet defineable with facts, suggests the correlation/causation argument. Specifically, a major criticism I see with Harris is that he is unable to blend his cognitive model with less systemic feminine or holistic theoretical models.

[@oriabiton323]

Very well put, thank you.

[@joaum2009]

Even in animation he looks like Ben Stiller! I couldn't agree more with Sam Harris in this argument.

[@Thallium212]

Kinda coincidental (and quite funny) that the argument between Hannibal Buress and Sam Harris came up automatically right after this video for me; A perfect example of someone [Buress] not being pragmatic and not willing to follow facts because they doesn't fit his world view.

[@TheCinnaman123]

1:19 "Indentity" should probably be "identity". might want to render again and edit