NationStates Jolt Archive

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P

You start thinking about possible threads to start the other day. ;)

This reality has long astounded me. It shouldn't I suppose. Humans like to catagorize and group themselves and when they do they develope ingroup and outgroup biases almost without exception. It is still dumbfounding that people who claim to be openminded and accepting of others can be so hypocritical. They are just about as bad as religous groups in their dogmatic denounciation of others.

Well, I personally am NOT open-minded.
I am firm and as stubborn as a pig in my belief that gays should marry and abortion should remain legal.(etc)

that your brains fall out! =)

Well, I personally am NOT open-minded.
I am firm and as stubborn as a pig in my belief that gays should marry and abortion should remain legal.(etc)

Its possible to believe those things and still remain open minded enough to allow others a difference of opinion.

i believe myself to be an open minded person - open minded enough to cause a problem: i don't ever really back or support anything because i'm always considering other opinions or alternatives to what i might at first think. i try to not bitch or put down other people's arguements - ever, even if they are amazingly closed mined about the issue - instead i try to reason and debate with them. if they don't see my reasoning (or refuse to) then so what? its their opinion and they're entitled to it as much as i am to mine.

that your brains fall out! =)
at least you know where it is, I let my mind wander wander - and it just never came back. :(

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P

This description is NOT of a truly open-minded person, but rather of someone who just claims to be one.

Do please try and differentiate between the two.

One aspect of this is the saying, "Be careful your mind isn't too open. People may put things into it you might not want." :D

Socrates hated em too, cant rember what the dialogs called, some people might know it, he meets that 'man is the measure of all things' chap aka mr ill keep my opinion you can have yours. Bloody pathetic its whats wrong with the western world no ones got the balls to stand up and say people are wrong, so right wing facists are sneaking in through the back.

Open mindness is the first step on the path to godless communism. Blind wholesale acceptance of whatever is novel, or sensational, in the name of "open mindness" without thought or care for what is right an decent has led us to our current state of moral degeneracy.

It is because of "open mindness" that our one unrivaled colleges and universities are now filled with mentally defectives and ethical cripples like Ward Churchill and Noam Chomsky. However, instead of recognizing this as a symptom of underlying decay in the American pyche - as it is - we, as a people, chose to wrongly view it as progress towards a better more "open minded" society.

I also blame open mindness for "rap" music.

Noam Chomsky

Noam Chomsky may possibly be the smartest man alive! (Of course that is my opinion)

Open mindness is the first step on the path to godless communism. Blind wholesale acceptance of whatever is novel, or sensational, in the name of "open mindness" without thought or care for what is right an decent has led us to our current state of moral degeneracy.

It is because of "open mindness" that our one unrivaled colleges and universities are now filled with mentally defectives and ethical cripples like Ward Churchill and Noam Chomsky. However, instead of recognizing this as a symptom of underlying decay in the American pyche - as it is - we, as a people, chose to wrongly view it as progress towards a better more "open minded" society.

I also blame open mindness for "rap" music.
:eek:

closed mindedness is better than having an open mind?? :confused:

I also blame open mindness for "rap" music.Hey wannabe-impostor (http://redwing.hutman.net/~mreed/warriorshtm/impostor.htm), you put the wrong word in quotes. That should read: "[...] rap "music" [...]"

Complete openmindedness is bad, and so is complete closemindedness.
The first because, as pointed out before, your brain falls out; The second because reality can't permeate through.
"There is a biphasic distribution." to quote someone ;)

Socrates hated em too, cant rember what the dialogs called, some people might know it, he meets that 'man is the measure of all things' chap aka mr ill keep my opinion you can have yours. Bloody pathetic its whats wrong with the western world no ones got the balls to stand up and say people are wrong, so right wing facists are sneaking in through the back.

fascism is a left-wing phenomenon as much as it is a right-wing one... lots and lots of government control. (nazis were national socialists)

i think that it is good to be open-minded, to a point:

IE, I don't want to be a total scrooge with strict rules for everything who is completely unaccepting of verbal or behavioral opposition. Conversely, i don't want to be a spineless flake who has no opinion or set of ethics.

Hey wannabe-impostor (http://redwing.hutman.net/~mreed/warriorshtm/impostor.htm), you put the wrong word in quotes. That should read: "[...] rap "music" [...]"

Actually, I find some rap "music" to be fun ... and a bit funny! :D

i think that it is good to be open-minded, to a point:

IE, I don't want to be a total scrooge with strict rules for everything who is completely unaccepting of verbal or behavioral opposition. Conversely, i don't want to be a spineless flake who has no opinion or set of ethics.

You have learned to strive for balance, Grasshopper! You are truly on the path to enlightenment! :D

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P

If you think openminded people are hypocrites then u might be right,
but not every openminded person is a hypocrite.
On a side note: So closed-minded people are people who stand behind a certain paradigm? In my opinion these people are also the onces who are prejudiced like hell and dont ever try something new and dismiss everything but then again these are my preassumptions as well.
But then again you cant really stereotype a person as open or close-minded, they may be open to certain things and closed to others.
To conclude: Noone is perfect. In the end its all about how you feel about something it :)

You have learned to strive for balance, Grasshopper! You are truly on the path to enlightenment! :D

No I'm not! You are totally wrong! hehe

I'm not sure if I'm open-minded. I'm all to happy to admit that I'm probably wrong about any given issue - but then, I'm certain that everyone else is...

All things in moderation.

Having an open mind doesn't require -acting- on those new ideas, simply being able to ponder them.

A great deal of it is just allowing oneself to be more objective.

As an example: I'm straight. I have, indeed, allowed for the possibility of me being otherwise, but find that since males annoy the hell out of me, and I really really really like the ladies, I am, by all appearances, straight. The fact that I know this allows me to be very comfortable with the fact. I spent two and a half years locked in a store, alone, with a gay guy, four nights a week. He gossiped about the gay clubs he went to, and his relationships, and the sex-filled parties he hears about (but doesn't attend, mind you). I gave him a fair dose of relationship advice, even. One a few occassions, he made what appeared to be mild passes at me, by saying I reminded him of the latest guy he had a crush on. I just smirked and shrugged through the whole thing. At no point was I nervous or creeped out. Put a truly close-minded person in the same situation, you'll likely end up with a much less comfortable situation. Being thus open also gets me the pleasure of grinning while the ladies in my life talk about going down on other gals.

So what does open-mindedness get you?

Lesbian sex fantasies.

I win.

:fluffle: :D

I consider myself open minded but I don't consider myself stupid. If something {an idea} is just too stupid to think about then I wont. And I don't force my somewhat liberal ideas down anyone elses throat because I assume just because it's my thought it doesn't exactly make it right.

Right?

So-called open-mindedness takes away all the fun in things, eg.. you can't make an ethnic/gay/sexist joke or you're just a homophobe/close-minded racist. However, jokes against "close-minded" people is ok.

My significant other and myself make black jokes all the time. And white jokes. And jokes of any race as long as it's funny and we giggle at it.

I don't see the problem there.

***I should probably advise that we make them in the company of each other and not total strangers.

So-called open-mindedness takes away all the fun in things, eg.. you can't make an ethnic/gay/sexist joke or you're just a homophobe/close-minded racist. However, jokes against "close-minded" people is ok.

Bull.

True open-minded people can handle tasteless jokes.

Haven't you seen that white woman on Mad TV making all the racist jokes?

Bull.

True open-minded people can handle tasteless jokes.

Perhaps they can, but there aren't too many who proclaim themselves to be the holier-than-thou open-mind.

Most people are close-minded.

They just happen to be different, so they want you to expand your mind to allow for their preferences.

So-called open-mindedness takes away all the fun in things, eg.. you can't make an ethnic/gay/sexist joke or you're just a homophobe/close-minded racist. However, jokes against "close-minded" people is ok.

Personally, I'm an equal-opportunity jokester.

Open minded means listening to peoples views and giving them a chance.

How stating that a person is close minded disagrees with that I don't know.

I like to think of myself as pretty open minded. I don't go around calling people close minded generally.

I like to look at all the views and different ideas. I like having my views challenged. I rarely tie myself down to any view (maybe I'm just indecisive...). I try and stick to facts being facts and opinions being opinions.

Close minded people... I just think they're missing out and are being too hasty in their judgements.

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P

I know I'm a hypocrite. It's fun! ;) :D

Perhaps they can, but there aren't too many who proclaim themselves to be the holier-than-thou open-mind.

That's because there aren't that many practical open-minded people.
People just have an open mind about stuff that seems okay to them, but not anything else. That's not practical open-mindedness.

Was it just me or did your rant have a hint (well, more than just a hint) of Maddox about it?

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P

the thread title should be "down with anybody who claims to be open-minded." nobody is completely open-minded, and anybody who says they are is either insane or lying.

No I'm not! You are totally wrong! hehe

:mp5:

Was it just me or did your rant have a hint (well, more than just a hint) of Maddox about it?

I don't think it did. Did it?

Being open minded is the practice of taking in and processing information, of reserving judgement until you actually know what you are talking about. It means you don't decry something simply because it is different. That doesn't mean you can't decry something in opposition, or that you have to abandon judgement entirely. Not being open to close-mindedness is not inherently close-minded. :headbang:

Noam Chomsky may possibly be the smartest man alive! (Of course that is my opinion)

I hardly think so.

:headbang:
Well, that's one way to open your mind. :)

I agree. Open-mindedness and closed-mindedness in context is a level of attentativeness: willingness to listen, pay attention, and hold off an opinion while respecting others' opinions. It does not imply agreeing with others' ideas.

I am open minded (to some degree) in about all areas of life EXCEPT in the existence of God as my master. Which I take to be a truth, by the way.

Well, that's one way to open your mind. :)

Killing brain cells is the only way to retain some level of sanity.

One aspect of this is the saying, "Be careful your mind isn't too open. People may put things into it you might not want." :D
there is a difference between being completely open minded and being discerning, but still open to new ideas. That said, i am well aware of the fact that you were jk.

Killing brain cells is the only way to retain some level of sanity.
I couldn't agree more *hic*.

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P
Actually, your description sounds like a close-minded person. An open-minded person considers all arguments -- s/he doesn't insist that s/he is right and you are wrong, so change or you're close-minded.

I'm more of an opinionated asshole who thrives on diversity. I don't think I still qualify as being "open-minded" anymore.

Dogmatic Toleration is illogical and contradictory. I like Prudential Toleration, however

Haha, another rant. This is something I was thinking about the other day and decided to post it here. No idea why, but I did.

Open-minded people; we all know at least, and most of us don't particularly like them. They keep trying to ram their incescant theories of everything down our throats, and nothing is too stupid for them to consider.

So what exactly is my problem with them? Simple - they're hypocrites.

They go around telling everyone how open-minded they are, and how they'll consider whatever we tell them. Yet as soon as you reject a theory of some sort they call you a close-minded person, who clearly has no outrospective on life. Thus, as open-minded as they are, they're anti-close-minded people. Which means they're not completely open-minded, which means they preach about how we should be open-minded, when they won't accept the theory of close-mindedness.

:P

Never tolerate intolerance!