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Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

#1209 Being part of the solution (How to argue your values)

Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

Jay Tomlinson

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.53.4K Ratings

🗓️ 11 September 2018

⏱️ 77 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Air Date: 9/11/2018

Today we take a look at some strategies to and reasons why we need to have better political conversations

Be part of the show! Leave a message at 202-999-3991

Episode Sponsors: The Daily Show: Ears Edition Podcast| Amazon USA| Amazon CA| Amazon UK

Support Best of the Left on Patreon!

SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Robb Willer: How to have better political conversations - @TEDTalks - Air Date 2-9-17

Robb Willer studies the forces that unite and divide us. As a social psychologist, he researches how moral values -- typically a source of division -- can also be used to bring people together.

Ch. 2: Understanding the backfire effect Part 1 - You are not so smart - Air Date 2-10-17

Stephan Lewandowsky takes us step-by-step through The Debunking Handbook, a guide he and John Cook wrote for avoiding the backfire effect when confronting vaccine and climate change deniers.

Ch. 3: THE MIDTERMS MINUTE: California’s Battleground Races! - Best of the Left Activism

Take action! Click the title and/or scroll down for quick links and resources from this segment.

Ch. 4: Van Jones: Exposing Liberal Hypocrisy and Conservative Close-Mindedness - Big Think - Air Date 11-23-17

The amount of political disagreement in the nation is matched only by righteous indignation. But in order to disagree without disrespecting each other, we need to look hard at our own positions, and Van Jones does just that.

Ch. 5: Understanding the backfire effect Part 2: Replacing the leg of a table - You are not so smart - Air Date 2-10-17

Explaining the key takeaway regarding the backfire effect. Always replace a faulty idea with a valid one. Never debunk a claim only to leave a void.

Ch. 6: In This Life - How to argue with those we oppose - Progressive Faith Sermons w @RevDrRay - Air Date 7-15-18

Explaining why saying the things you may want to say to your political adversaries is more likely to exacerbate the problems in our political divide further, making you part of the problem.

VOICEMAILS

Ch. 7: How do I know I'm not just in my own echo chamber? - Michael from the UK

Ch. 8: Final comments on expanding your view and understanding of news media

THE MIDTERMS MINUTE

ASAP: Check your state registration deadlines and voter ID laws

GET INVOLVED:

Swing Left (Help flip districts from anywhere)

Voter Circle(friend-to-friend outreach tool)

Volunteer for Democrats

Abroad? Phone bank for Democrats

Let America Vote (voting rights focus)

Justice Democrats “Justice Dialer”

Brand New Congress GOTV Dialer

National Democratic Redistricting Committee

Easily donate to candidates with DownTicket.comon your mobile browser.

15 Ways to Help a Campaign Win Their Election” (Political Charge)

CALIFORNIA BATTLEGROUNDS (Note: List may vary by org or outlet):

Important Dates: Must be registered/postmarked by October 22nd (more info)

Local Action:California Democratic Party https://www.cadem.org/take-action

Push Left! U.S. Senate - Kevin de Leon (D Safe Seat)

Flip CA-10th: Josh Harder

Swing Left: https://swingleft.org/district/CA-10

Flip CA-25th: Katie Hill

Swing Left: https://swingleft.org/district/CA-25

Flip CA-39th: Gil Cisneros

Swing Left: https://swingleft.org/district/CA-39

Flip CA-45th: Katie Porter

Swing Left: https://swingleft.org/district/CA-45

Flip CA-48th: Harley Rouda

Swing Left: https://swingleft.org/district/CA-48

Flip CA-49th: Mike Levin

Swing Left: https://swingleft.org/district/CA-49

Sources: Ballotpedia; NBC News; Swing Left

Researched & Written by BOTL Communications Director Amanda Hoffman

MUSIC:

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Thanks for listening!

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

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Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Review the show on iTunesand Stitcher!

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Get your daily news fix by listening to the Daily Show with Trevor Noah Ears edition,

0:08.3

as you might guess, it's like the Daily Show, but for your ears.

0:11.7

And studies show that ears are great for listening, so who are we to deny science?

0:16.6

Trevor Noah and the world's fakes news team tackle the biggest stories in news, politics

0:21.4

and pop culture.

0:22.8

Subscribe to the Daily Show with Trevor Noah Ears edition for highlights and extended

0:27.1

interviews available Tuesday through Friday mornings on Apple Podcasts or wherever

0:31.9

you get your ears on a podcast.

0:34.0

And now, welcome to this episode of the award-winning Best of Left Podcasts in which we shall

0:38.4

learn about some strategies to and reason why we need to have better political conversations.

0:45.0

Clips Today Start with a Ted Talk by Rob Willard, followed by Clips From The URNotSoSmart

0:50.6

Podcasts Big Thank and a portion of a progressive faith sermon from Dr. Roger Ray.

0:57.6

Do you probably have the sense, as most people do, that polarization is getting worse in

1:08.9

our country, that the divide between the left and the right is as bad as it's been in

1:15.4

really any of our lifetimes, but you might also reasonably wonder if research backs up

1:21.4

your intuition.

1:23.3

And in a nutshell, the answer is, sadly, yes.

1:29.4

In study after study, we find that liberals and conservatives have grown further apart.

1:35.9

They increasingly wall themselves off in these ideological silos, consuming different news,

1:42.2

talking only to like-minded others, and more and more choosing to live in different parts

1:47.3

of the country.

1:49.4

And I think that most alarming of all of it is seeing this rising animosity on both sides.

...

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