The edges become bigger, wider, louder, angrier, more violent, and more entrenched in their views, with the conviction that their view is correct above all others.
What to do with the people at the edges, the ones who shout and bitch and fight and scratch and scream and will not listen to any other point of view? What to do when we encounter the edges?
The first thing is not to be at the edge yourself, it’s to have the self-awareness to move towards the middle, to move towards the reasonable, the understanding, the kindness, the ability to listen to someone else's thoughts and words, the ability to try to see the world through their eyes, to live in their shoes, if just for a moment.
Only by using all the strength we have, the stamina, and the resolve to avoid and resist the pull to the edge will we have any chance of potentially encouraging others to take the same route.
Social media did this, make no mistake about this.
The ability to shout and scream at people, apparently without recourse, to live in an echo chamber of only your views, because it suits the algorithm to push more and more extremism your way, whatever your version of extremism is.
And so, it's easy, isn't it? Get off and out of that, get face to face, speak to people, see their hurt, see their pain, understand their position on both sides of the divide, so that we can come together.
We have no other chance, not a single one. If you live at the edge, you will not ‘win’, your edge will not ‘win’ whatever you think ‘win’ is.
Only by coming together, all of us coming together, do we have any chance to make anything better.
Blog Post Number - 4253
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