Can’t we just hold it?

[coberst]

Can’t we just hold it?

Accept or reject are not the only options one has. The most important and generally overlooked, especially by the young, is the option to ‘hold’.

It appears to me that many young people consider that ‘to be negative is to be cool’. This leads them into responding that ‘X is false’ when responding to an OP that states that ‘X is true’.

When a person takes a public position affirming or denying the truth of ‘Y’ they are often locking themselves into a difficult position. If their original position was based on opinion rather than judgment their ego will not easily allow them to change position once they have studied and analyzed ‘Y’.

The moral of this story is that holding a default position of ‘reject or accept’, when we are ignorant, is not smart because our ego will fight any attempt to modify the opinion with a later judgment. Silence, or questions directed at comprehending the matter under consideration, is the smart decision for everyone’s default position.

Our options are reject, accept, and hold. I claim that ‘hold’ is the most important and should be the most often used because everyone is ignorant of almost everything.

Do you accept, reject, or hold judgment regarding my claim?

 

[Fluffywolf]

I have many reservations. And I do agree it is important to be able to do so. No one can accept are reject anything on the fly. It is important to take the time to process such things.

But I do aim to either accept or reject an idea. It is important to me to get to the bottom of an idea and find out on which side I am on. But I will accept any amount of time that it will need.

I think for young people the main problem is that they believe there is a need to be either one or the other, in order to belong to a group or clique when they grow up.
As holding judgement doesn't mean anything to the people around them. They're indirectly forced to have an opinion in order to achieve conversational reaction, and the need to belong.

As we grow up, the meaning of that importance fades and we are much more capable of having reservations.

Young people work towards becoming part of a group or a whole. Mature people work towards becoming true to themselves.

 

[professor goodstain]

Only one problem i can maybe foresee with this possibly is once a conversation/thread is started, if to many folks decide to 'hold', then permalink 2-14 will not exist due to people holding. Which could lead to the nonexistence of post 14-50 due to people probably waiting to get more insight. Unless, perhaps, you'd like to see more "possibly", "probably", "perhaps", "maybe", "might", "could", ect.

 

[Sentura]

you are assuming everything is tied to logic. binary choice has always been an illusion.

 

[Athenian200]

No, I have to go to the bathroom NOW!

Kidding aside, I've heard this idea before, and I think it has value.

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." - Aristotle

Essentially, he's describing exactly what you're talking about. Yes, I think it's important to evaluate an idea carefully, and describe why you agree or disagree with each part of it. That way, you can update your opinion/perspective as your understanding evolves rather than being stuck completely agreeing or completely disagreeing.

 

[Oberon]

It's like being 'agnostic' on a topic.

People argue, for example, about the existence of UFOs. I'm agnostic on the subject; I have no firsthand information to confirm or deny their existence.

Seems simple enough.

 

[Quinlan]

Passing judgement comes naturally to a lot of people, they need that yes or no, black and white view of the world to feel stable and safe. Also fence sitting is generally frowned upon by these people and society, it comes natural for me to withhold judgement on most things, I'm definitely not one to come out and say I know anything close to objective truth.

I like to explore things fully before passing judgement, that can be frustrating when others want to debate for and against and get quite upset about it, when all I'm doing is exloring both sides of the issue.

 

[coberst]

Iraq has weapons of mass destruction.
Freud and Darwin are frauds.
God made me.
You are driving too fast.

When faced with these statements does it matter which of the three buttons ‘accept, reject, or hold’ that you push?

Just what impact does a decision of 'reject or accept' have on my future considerations?

It is my assumption that such a decision causes me to either stop or at least to slow down any further consideration of the matter. It appears to me that many of our conclusions are “worked out” within our unconscious, especially while we sleep.

Our educational system is designed around the basic premise that the students will accept what is told to them and that this acceptance is very important for their future welfare and for the welfare of the community.

 

[Fluffywolf]

Our educational system is designed around the basic premise that the students will accept what is told to them and that this acceptance is very important for their future welfare and for the welfare of the community.

For the welfare of the community, and the future of their participation in it.

 

[Grayscale]

i thought this was about going to the bathroom...