# The American Suppression of Thinking By:: [[Brian Heath]] 2024-03-02 The modern American paradigm suppresses the art of thinking. The most significant evidence lies in the dominance of only two options for any belief or problem. Is one a Republican or Democrat? Is one for or against a war? Does one believe in conspiracy theories or not? Does one like Coke or Pepsi? Does one use an iPhone or Android? Is one for or against healthcare as a right? One could spend a day generating these dual-choice questions common in the American societal narrative. They are instantly familiar, and one will likely be strained to think of a viable third option for each. If one does come up with a third option, one will immediately think, "Well, yes, that is a third option, but it has little or no consequence in the grand scheme of things." The lack of options combined with the easy dismissal of those options suppresses one from developing the capacity to think deeply. If there are two options, one can fight an endless battle of us versus them in the realm of beliefs versus facts. If there are three options, the amount of complexity grows significantly. All three sides can still fight the us versus them battle but now must contrast one's beliefs against two alternatives. Invariably, one of those other beliefs will be more tolerable, and one might think teaming up with them might not be so bad on some topics. One is now considering alternatives beyond one's initial belief system. In other words, one is starting to think more deeply about the issues. Additionally, with three options, it's much harder to flip a coin or roll the dice to decide which one is more closely associated with one's experience and thoughts. One must reflect, weigh, and consider the alternatives across three dimensions. With more options comes more thinking, which invariably brings about more options to consider. As one considers more options, one gains a greater appreciation for diversity, humanity, and solidarity. Battling against this positive feedback loop is economic competition and anxiety. Economic competition continuously collapses emergent optionality in the name of industrial production and efficiency. This naturally limits choices, but humans may also prefer to have fewer options to reduce anxiety about making a wrong choice. Thus, there are forces opposed to each other. Thinking wants to generate more options, while economic competition and our anxiety want to limit choices. A quick scan of the American landscape demonstrates which force is dominant. As an economic powerhouse with poor coping skills when it comes to anxiety, America as a society suppresses optionality and, therefore, thinking and all its benefits. This does not mean one should swing from one side to the other. Overthinking means nothing gets done, and many nations exhibit this trait. The balance is hard to achieve. Many might think the internet has created a means for additional optionality, but it only accelerates the communication of cultural norms. Thinking, as a movement to increase optionality and robustness, must work to reduce societal anxiety while leveraging economic competition to generate more robust networks of options in the name of sustainable survival. #### Related Items [[American]] [[Economics]] [[Anxiety]] [[Thinking]] [[Sustainable]] [[Beliefs]] [[Choice]] [[Facts]] [[Norms]]