# Good and Bad By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2022-11-01 People frequently discuss things in terms of good and bad. One might say a book, movie, project, person, policy, political party, location, or way of being in the world is good or bad. When one makes such a claim, we understand generally what the person means. After all, most of us know what the terms good and bad mean. But beyond this general level of understanding, we really don’t have any idea what the person is talking about. What does a given individual consider necessary for a book (or anything else) to be good or bad? Likely we have no idea. Since we know what the person means generally, frequently we don’t ask for further development. The claim of something is good or bad rather than being informative forms a barrier to discussion and understanding. Perhaps more problematically for adults, framing things in terms of goodness and badness is childish. This is the language parents and grade school teachers use to admonish children. Such a framework offers no room for nuance or complexity. It is reductionist and judgmental. In terms of books and movies, such assessments have little practical effect. In terms of people, policies, and political parties such assessments can be consequential. As the saying goes, there is no accounting for taste. People like what they like. It would be [[Absurd]] to attack this element of existence. How one goes about articulating this is open to critique as it affects society. Developing the ability to articulate and analyze qualitative assessments is an important aspect of analysis. Holding oneself and others to articulating a position is essential for organizations and societies. It is the only way to ensure understanding and allow for productive discussions. Discussing something important in terms of it being either good or bad, is inadequate for the task. In fact, one might say it’s bad. #### Related Items [[Good]] [[Bad]] [[Value]] [[Analytics]] [[Society]]