Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To be utterly fed up dealing with the hard of thinking

130 replies

Wiggler1 · 15/11/2018 21:11

I am so so sick of listening to/reading the opinions of people who just fail to engage their brains for more than a nanosecond on any subject that takes their fancy.

“We voted leave/brexit means brexit”

“Trans women are women”

“Fed is best”

“Women just aren’t as good at corporate jobs”

“Vaccines cause autism”

“Animals don’t have emotions/opinions”

Ad infinitum. We KNOW that brexit is likely to lead to economic doom (at least for a period), trans women are not biological women, breast is actually best for the health outcomes of mother and baby at population level (although there are very valid reasons it may not be for individuals), women are just as successful in the corporate world if they’re not held back by men (or other women), vaccines do not cause autism, animals very visibly do have emotions/opinions, if you bother to watch them for long enough, etc etc etc.

I know this is likely to be controversial because of the examples I’ve used, but my point is that people just don’t seem to be able to engage with the slightest piece of research or evidence that their opinions are not in line with the facts.

I can understand knowing a surface level about a topic and getting things wrong, we’re all learning, but listening to people shouting their world view progressively louder, despite all evidence to the contrary, is utterly infuriating.

If you have a well thought out opposing view I’m more than happy to debate, tell me about the research you’ve done on potential economic outcomes of brexit, or why formula is as good as breast milk, I’m interested in differing opinions as a way to learn more myself. Yelling “BAN ABORTIONS” at me without any substance whatsoever and bashing me over the head with a placard makes me want to burn down the world.

OP posts:
Unicyclethief · 17/11/2018 03:58

Like other posters, I think it is shocking and disheartening that there is a distinct lack of critical thinking nowadays.

Caprisunorange · 17/11/2018 04:10

As a PP stated very elequently, the general public have never had a decent level of critical thinking. It’s not new

Op I think you come across as dismissive and superior, and that’s why you’re annoying people- it’s a very unlikeable trait. I have a few scientist friends who are very similar, you need to also expand your horizons a little to understand that not everything can be definitively answered by a peer reviewed science paper Hmm

ShackUp · 17/11/2018 04:37

OP I agree with you. The worst of it is, you state a fact and some Leaver (or whoever) says, 'that's your opinion'.

It's so frustrating.

parchworkpatty · 17/11/2018 05:04

I think OP is spot on.

The art of reasoned debate has been lost to rehashed sound bites. Opion is formed based on 5 second Twitter reads.

People need to take more time to inform themselves before clicking 'like' .

hdh747 · 17/11/2018 05:21

In some cases I expect you have a point.
I also suspect some posters got tired of explaining their persepective, again, to someone who doesn't actually want to hear and understand it but to tell them it's wrong. I have seen a little of, 'actually you have a good point, I hadn't thought of that' here on MN and a lot of 'get a grip, you're hard of thinking, and a general, if I ignore what you say and keep re-stating my position whiilst trotting out my carefully selected statistics then clearly you will see I'm right.'

New posts on this thread. Refresh page