You don’t know jack about …

Glenn Beck.

This post is more about reasoned discourse in general than directed at Glenn Beck himself. I use the example of Mr. Beck because he is a very polarizing figure. More than anyone I know he’s characterized as being a villain and I believe wrongfully so. Many of the people that I know who dislike him do so based on sound bites and the opinions of others that they hear in passing. Their comments are not based in personal knowledge, but on hearsay.

I have done my homework. I have listened to thousands of hours of Glenn Beck’s radio shows, his television broadcasts and special documentaries produced by Mercury Radio Arts. When I speak of Glenn Beck, I do know what I’m talking about, because I have spent the time to get to know the man behind the words. There is context here that critics can rarely muster.

artist - unknown source: spencersb.blogspot.com

This is the vital point. An honest critic will refute the substance of the argument, complete with contextual considerations. There is no room for ad hominem attacks, straw-man arguments, and mud-slinging.

If you want to rise to the level of a true intellectual, you should be able to state your opponent’s argument to their satisfaction, and then refute it in a reasoned manner. This means that instead of divisive statements like, “The Republicans just want to kill grandma” and “Democrats support killing babies,” we need to get the buy-in from our ideological adversaries. They should be able to say, “What you just said is exactly what I believe to be true.” Only when we begin with the goal of fostering understanding will we have a chance at remaining united, while still having differences of opinion. Is it worthwhile for us to remain united?

Allow me to illustrate my point with a personal application. I have a friend who told me once that the military is essentially a dead-end job, and that they felt the only people who would enlist are dumb. This frustrated me, as this person is a public school teacher, and would certainly be offended by the assertion that, “People who cannot do, teach.” Sweeping generalizations are perilous to our credibility, and we must divorce ourselves of their use. We should adopt the principle of treating others the way we would like to be treated.

Back to Glenn Beck. He is the most transparent public figure I can name. By all accounts, he is the same on-screen and off. Mr. Beck is dedicated to being genuine, largely because he spent too much of his life hiding behind a bottle of Jack Daniels. He watched his life unravel before him, and in the midst of the tumult, he found friends that would not give up on him. He found renewed purpose, largely because of his relationship with God, and has pulled himself from near obscurity and ruin to his current stature as a media giant and a decent guy. This very abbreviated bio would become obvious to anyone who would care to do even a week of research to get to know him. Glenn beck is a good man, who is passionate about what he believes. Want to get to know Glenn Beck a little?

You may disagree with him. That’s okay. You may not agree with a lot of people. Just don’t let your zeal for “your side” allow you to lose your soul, just so you can make a point.