Unpopular

 

One of the things I remember when I first learned about Myers-Briggs personality types in college is that my type (INTJ) is comfortable with and in fact seeks out unpopular opinions, not necessarily to hold them but to test them in order to learn more and push the envelope. I recall thinking that that characterized me, and I also recall thinking that this insight also meant such impulses did not come as easily to others.

Fast forward to the present, and I still think about this, particularly as we have become a more outwardly divisive and antagonistic culture. I respect the fact that voicing unpopular opinions is sometimes not a matter of stimulating intellectual discourse but something that is hurtful, inflammatory, and destructive. And I respect the fact that power dynamics are such that some are able to bear hypotheticals more freely whereas for others mere suggestions exacerbate existing vulnerabilities. One must tread lightly when probing things that have the potential to cause harm and unravel tenuous calm.

But one must still tread. For each of us to be informed, we must keep an open mind, even and perhaps especially to things we reflexively oppose. And for all of us to be informed, the media must do its job objectively and doggedly, seeking truth even if it yields inconvenient conclusions or is being guarded by the powerful.

Of course, this is simultaneously most important and most difficult for our most contentious issues. Climate change and infectious pandemics are incredibly complex things to get a handle on, so we must keep an open mind in order to properly learn and act, and yet we so easily default to name-calling instead. Similarly, it is critically important to hold our leaders to account, yet too much media coverage feels like the press either has it out for someone or is giving them a pass, leaving the rest of us to make sense of the biased coverage, under-coverage, or even utter lack of coverage.

I realize that this comes more easily for us INTJs, but I still think this is something we all need to work on. Let's be more empathetic that when considering every angle and seeking out the truth, we do not offend and we do not harm. But let's be less concerned that when considering every angle and seeking out the truth takes us in the direction of something that is unpopular, we will care more about getting it right than about how we are perceived.