The Open-Mindedness Dilemma

[ehowton]

Recently fellow-blogger/philosopher & aunt-in-law asked in her post:

It is so difficult for me to abide those groups/individuals that try to justify their views without facts or make them up to fit their belief. The " That's just the way I feel" type of thinking. Now, I don't care if they just do this to themselves, but when they try to impact me with their voodoo logic, I often see red...So am I truly open-minded? ~ suzanne1945

In this same post she embedded a wonderful video 1 discussing the traits of the open-minded and how their nemesis the close-minded attempt to prey upon them using gross misrepresentation prior to following up with accusations of close-mindedness. Sadly, I am wearily familiar with this "tactic" (if you can call it that). As I have stated before,

"Your counterpoint of, Nuh-uh where considering others' opinions which differ from your own is complex and thought-provoking. I'm going to need a little time to digest it all. Your ability to dismiss multifaceted complexity and break things down into simplistic elements is a refreshing gift." *

But with her question also comes the answer:

1. Being open-minded simply means being willing to consider new ideas.
2. When I say I don’t believe something, I’ve not said that it can’t be true.
3. Open-mindedness isn’t about believing things.
4. A willingness to consider new ideas doesn’t commit you to accepting them unconditionally.
5. Critical thinking is not incompatible with open-mindedness, rather it empowers an open mind.

After careful consideration, and based on the information provided in the video, she is open-minded. She'd been given a view, correctly applied critical thinking to it, and rejected it. The fact that she even considered another point of view proves it.

Thanks for the exercise!

1 - Transcript Here