Value Right Ideas from "Wrong" People
Evaluate the ideas not the person who proposes them.
We seem to reject all the ideas of people who get some things “wrong,” (from our perspective), even though they get many other things “right,” (also from our perspective). This especially true when their “wrong” ideas are part of their partisan arsenal.
Leaving aside the possibility that our “perspective” is failable, this seems like a way to miss a lot of good ideas.
The problems we face are varied, not always related to each other, and “solvers” may strike gold on one mountain while shoveling a lot of gravel on another. A rigid ideological approach leads many to single-minded approaches. If a hammer works here, and I’m blessed with hammer power and addicted to sonorous accolades for hammering, well then ….
I think you know where I’m going with this. It’s most familiar example is the old private/public distinction. If it’s a government solution, it’s wrong. If it’s a private business solution it’s right. But sober consideration of different ideas should work for many other choices. Does anyone have all the answers? And don’t most people have something useful to say?
Many so-called solutions (let’s just accept them as relevant “fixes”) are abstractions developed to “explain” success in one area and often to justify continuing the approach in another. In any case, they may not be long-term, and they certainly are not universally applicable. Instead, by listening to “foreign” ideas, even those that may never become “prime time,” we can develop interesting ideas of our own. It’s called working together.
Returning to the hammer analogy, don’t batter a rock with a scalpel just because hammers have limited use in operating theaters. And don’t sell your hammers at the next garage sale. And don’t leave them under the tree at Christmas time for two-year-olds to find.
Welcome, in other words, insightful and intriguing ideas from bright people, and don’t pay over much attention to their pedigree. We have a lot to learn from each other.