Posted by One of the best analyses of fundamentalist thinking I’ve ever read
It is impossible to debate a fundamentalist….because their very language psychologically traps them into their frames of mind.
In saying it is impossible to debate fundamentalists, Race is saying that fundamentalists — to borrow a concept from Robert Jay Lifton‘s idea of totalism — load the language. They use language in a radically different way from most society, which enables them to control dialogue. They use “thought-stopping cliches” (which is also a term Lifton uses). Race explains that,
That’s why it’s impossible to debate with a fundamentalist. By replacing “my” with “God” and melding beliefs about authority with authority itself, fundamentalist vocabulary has left no room for humility, reason, openness, doubt or change.
And, in conclusion: fundamentalism values ideology over people
Yes. A crisp insight, one that’s vital to understanding current political discourse or my college years.
Source: Whether or Not It’s Possible to Debate Fundamentalists, Fundamentalists Want to Debate You
