2025-05-08

A lot of days in this current week were spent alongside this feeling of disappointment with other people. This does not discount the fact that sometimes, I also become that other people in a sense that I become disappointed with myself. The basis of it all stems from the art of communication. It does seem that whether online or in real life, there is an unknown factor that I cannot identify that unravels this symptom in talkin with other people. Miscommunication is in the air and I can only suspect that it is a combination of intentional and unintentional actions. People often open their mouth out of impulse that they must say something and this impulse is justified by the thought that they are confidently correct.

"I know about this topic, therefore I must speak about it." Knowing, in this sense is synonymous with "having a thought", which is why most people equate free speech with respecting everyone's opinion. This seemingly "safe ontological space of thought" becomes a person's comfort zone. I am allowed to speak because I have an opinion and no one can speak against it. I am inside my bubble and you will stay in yours. We can disagree so I can hold the position of being unable to be proven false.

On the other hand, if I say that this is a logically incorrect position to hold, I become entitled to my opinion and it automatically discredits the value of my idea based on the other's assumption that we are all only talking to share our "opinions." We never arrive to a conversation where an exchange of ideas happen because of the fact that we are holding on to our deep-held prejudices. Prejudices that consist this ontological bubble become our comfort zones. Maintaining this space renders any form of critique impossible because the rejection of an idea is immaculately fascistic.

These past few days, I keep thinking about a lot of possible ways to circumvent this thinking. All I can think of is a valid Socratic dialogue that aims to fuel a person's narcissism by initially coming to an understanding of their worldview and then dismantle it using their own logic. Still, it sounds easier said than done. But I would like to see myself pull it off more than ever.