I get what you are saying. And the realistic answer is that people will believe what they want to believe. Most people don't enter discussions to hear the other viewpoint. They enter discussions to cast their view onto others. Now imagine two people coming together to "discuss" an issue, and each one entering that discussion from theh viewpoint that they are there to convince the other one of their own viewpoint (NOT to get all the facts). Now, throw in our "ego" factor and what do you think will happen?
Both will walk away with the same beliefs they entered with. They will have gained some skill in debating, perhaps, and some new views, but neither is likely to adopt any new beliefs unless those new beliefs were proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.
It's the same reason why there are thousands of threads here on this forum filled with people asking for advice that they rarely ever listen to. And that's because a lot of people posting for advice here aren't looking for new viewpoints on the subject (although they say and even THINK they are). Most are looking for validation for what they already believe or for convincing of solutions that they've already thought of.
I'm guilty of this btw. Don't mean to make myself seem self-righteous or like I'm above others for pointing that out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kean  Another reason I am asking this is because it is relevant in a wider context that has been bugging me for a while. For example, we often hear, "Change yourself before you change the world." etc. It somehow implies that the world cannot be changed and that the need to "try to change others" is a bad trait.
Why would you think it is bad to try changing others? |
Nah, it doesn't imply that the world can't be changed. It implies that you can't change the world until you change yourself. The ability to adapt is a key trait of all the people who have every made a dent in history.
And it's not bad to change others. But you can't change others until you change yourself. You can't compel someone to go a mile with you if you aren't willing to walk tat mile yourself.