Street Epistemology - A Conversational Game Changer.

     So, in an earlier blog I spoke of the idea of practising communication, both listening and speaking towards a goal of clarity.

In a nutshell – it’s that single nutshell where everyone tries to cram in their succinct summaries of things (it must be some sort of quantum nutshell) – in that nutshell, I wrote of the importance of listening, of giving space to the speaker so that they have a chance to think through their idea and present it clearly; I also wrote of the equal importance to be patient, and to garner an environment where the speaker feels comfortable to make mistakes, to not feel like they’re being judged, rushed, or ridiculed.

     There was more stuff. This nutshell really is an endless pocket of space. I will leave it there, however.

     Why the repeat paragraph? Well, I’m glad you asked, question guy who camps out in my head.

     I have recently stumbled upon a thing called street epistemology. It is a mind blower, possibly a game changer. It is basically the very thing I was musing about in that previous blog, already in action for… well, a long time.

     I could tell you it’s based on the Socratic method for the most part – which uses questions to challenge the validity of a claim, rather than use facts to attack it. I could wax philosophical about our human nature to question, and thus argue this method is ingrained in our DNA, as ancient as the beginnings of language itself.

     I’ll put that aside for now, and just switch on praise mode. Praise for the method of Street Epistomology itself, and for a fella named Anthony Magnabosco, who uses it like a Jedi.

     Basically, this is a tool for talking. It takes the process of questioning and applies it to our every day lives, to all the conversations we have, whether friend or foe. And it does so in a respectful, non-argumentative way.

     Imagine, a conversation about whether god exists, between an atheist and a believer, where the end result is an amiable handshake and a desire to continue the conversation at a later point.

     Get the f@$k outta here!

     Anthony does this all the time. Even with the most devout and zealous street preacher types – with a few exceptions, of course.

     The key is, it’s not about arguing for one side or another. It’s not about the belief itself, but the how one arrived at that belief. It’s about getting us to think about these things, to look at our methods for forming beliefs under a microscope – it’s very meta.

     And, while the subject of religion is often a place where the method is employed, it can be used in politics, conspiracy theory, anything. Actually, that’s where I see its greatest potential. Because while the subject of god and religion interests me to no end, there are some roadblocks in the conversation that ultimately cannot be overcome.

     Politics, however – while sadly often sharing parallels with religion – is a place where a lot of confusion can occur, and a whole lot of emotion can derail a conversation before it even begins.

     Street Epistemology is about clarity and understanding. Sometimes, in politics, while watching two sides argue, I wonder if they are even arguing about the same thing. And I am sure they have their minds made up about the opposition’s position, regardless of what their opponent might say.

     Sometimes a simple misunderstanding of a single word’s definition is all it takes to create a war.

     Truth is, there’s no good way for me to describe the power of Street Epistemology and its potential, beyond encouraging you to look up a few of Anthony Magnabosco’s videos. In particular, I’d recommend his two conversations with Maritza, which are particularly powerful.

     But I’ll end on this note. I think the greatest obstacle we must overcome in our search for truth is ego. Ego encourages us to hang onto things that may certainly be wrong, simply because we want to avoid humiliation. Ego also makes us feel righteous, superior and smug when we do  happen to be right about something – shorthand, it makes us act like assholes to people.

     And frankly, people would rather remain wrong about something, than be convinced by an asshole.

     Street Epistemology. Anthony Magnabosco. Look em up. It’ll change the way you think.