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I’m Right and You’re an Idiot

The Toxic State of Public Discourse and How to Clean it Up

The most pressing environmental problem we face today is not climate change. It is pollution in the public square, where a smog of adversarial rhetoric, propaganda and polarization stifles discussion and debate, creating resistance to change and thwarting our ability to solve our collective problems.

In I’m Right and You’re an Idiot, author and David Suzuki Foundation chair James Hoggan grapples with this critical issue, conducting interviews with outstanding thinkers from the Himalaya to the House of Lords. Drawing on the wisdom of such notables as Thich Nhat Hanh, Noam Chomsky, and the Dalai Lama, his comprehensive analysis explores:

How trust is undermined and misinformation thrives in today’s public dialogue

Why facts alone fail — the manipulation of language and the silencing of dissent

The importance of reframing our arguments with empathy and values to create compelling narratives and spur action.

Our species’ greatest survival strategy has always been foresight and the ability to leverage our intelligence to overcome adversity. For too long now this capacity has been threatened by the sorry state of our public discourse. Focusing on proven techniques to foster more powerful and effective communication, I’m Right and You’re an Idiot will appeal to readers looking for both deep insights and practical advice.

Contributors

James Hoggan

James Hoggan is president of the PR firm Hoggan & Associates and chair of the David Suzuki Foundation board. A tireless advocate for ethics and integrity in public relations, he founded the influential website DeSmogBlog to expose misinformation campaigns that pollute public debate around climate change and the environment. He has advised a wide range of organizations, governments, universities and corporations, and is a sought-after speaker around North America and Europe. Hoggan has chaired and served on numerous national and international boards and advisory committees including the Four Great Rivers Society and Shell Global’s External Review Committee. He is the author of Climate Cover-Up and Do the Right Thing: PR Tips for a Skeptical Public.

Chapter Title Contents Contributors Pages Year Price

Preview

 “Just as we can pollute the natural environment, we can pollute public conversations.” While the experts disagree about why this is happening, they concur when it comes to the damage … 6 $0.60

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 Polarization is dangerous because it interrupts lines of communicationand leads to gridlock. It stops us from tackling urgent problems because without consensus we cannot take effective action. … 10 $1.00

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 When we look at the miserable state of public discourse today and how we are polluting the public square, it’s plain to see that many people believe the problem derives from evil on … 9 $0.90

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 The brain is designed with blind spots, optical and psychological, and one of its cleverest tricks is to confer on us the comforting delusion that we, personally, do not have any. In a sense, … 12 $1.20

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 Ingrained, tribal behaviors can bind and blind us, and shut down open-minded thinking. Looking at the dynamic of polarization from the point of view of tribes and teams is enlightening and useful … 9 $0.90

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 Group values impact risk perceptions and how our interpretation of scientific evidence is shaped by our cultural affiliations. Cultural cognition describes the tendency of individuals to conform … 8 $0.80

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 Lakoff described frames as metaphors and conceptual frameworks that we use to interpret and understand the world. They give meaning to the words we hear more than the other way around, because … 7 $0.70

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 Latour told me we should put aside matters of fact and focus instead upon matters of concern, a conclusion he arrived at after having studied everything from environmental crises to atmospheres … 12 $1.20

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 An over reliance on facts and a questionable belief in the power of reason contribute to today’s toxic conversations and acrimonious dialogue, but another area of great concern is … 12 $1.20

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 Never has there been a greater disparity between what scientists say we should be concerned about and what members of government and the oil and gas industry are doing. In this case study I … 15 $1.50

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 Himelfarb believes that the Right prefers to shut down public discourse and that modern life makes it easy for this to happen. Issues of the common good often don’t make it to the table. It … 7 $0.70

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 Stanley explained there are a number of rhetorical and linguistic tactics that are being used now to silence people, and one of the most blatant is the misappropriation of words such as ethical … 8 $0.80

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 Welch said that today’s gaslighters work in the public square to create confusion and prey on public vulnerability, using sophisticated forms of manipulation, mind games and PR spin. … 6 $0.60

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 I found the attacks on scientists and the volume of propaganda used to cloud environmental issues puzzling. I found myself becoming angrier about the deception and lack of fair play than I was … 12 $1.20

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 Adam Kahane’s work has shown him it is increasingly vital for people to work together, not just with friends and colleagues, but also with strangers and opponents, even enemies, in order to … 12 $1.20

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 Society is faced with a two-fold problem: Not only do scientists have difficulty communicating intuitively and effectively, but also the environmental community is “addicted to a fear-based … 13 $1.30

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 When Scharmer joined the MIT Learning Center founded by Peter Senge, he focused on what they call learning from the emerging future as opposed to the past, “and only then did I start to tap … 12 $1.20

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 What if the lack of involvement in climate change has come about because this care and concern is not expressed or acknowledged? If we presume there is a surplus of care and concern and a desire … 9 $0.90

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 When numbers soar, our consistency with basic values and concerns collapses. Most people are caring and highly responsive when they hear of an individual’s desperate plight, yet are numbly … 10 $1.00

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 Compassion is a virtuous cycle, and practicing the Golden Rule yields an expanded sense of self, which yields ever more compassionate behavior.philosophers and religious leaders such as … 7 $0.70

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 Thich Nhat Hanh used the example of a pine tree and suggested, what if that tree asked us what it could do to help the world? Our answer would be very clear: “You should be a beautiful, … 10 $1.00

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 Tibet offers an acute lesson in interconnectedness that is hard to miss when you’re there. Tibet showed me precisely how an area can suffer when climate change is on fast forward. I also … 12 $1.20

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 Why aren’t people demanding action on environmental issues like climate change, despite the overwhelming evidence? This mission evolved along the way, and soon I was looking into the sorry … 12 $1.20