Pandas and Koalas: How I Learned That I Am A Horribly Biased Person (And Why You Are, Too!)

How do you get people to not like Obama? You give them nonbiased, factual information that shows Obama's policies helped the economy and improved the country.

There's this logical fallacy called confirmation bias where people prefer to read information that supports their point of view over information that doesn't. And by people, I mean you. I know, you're sitting there thinking "Yeah, confirmation bias is really bad, it's horrible, I hate that everyone else does it, but I would never do it, I'm a fair and balanced human being who carefully weighs the pros and cons of every option." Well, bad news: You're not. You are just as susceptible to confirmation bias as anyone else.

To make matters worse, there's another thing called disconfirmation bias where if you read information that doesn't agree with your point of view, you are far more likely to argue against it, see faults in it, think it's bad evidence, not pay attention to it, and so on. Again, you may think you don't do this. You are wrong.

Taking these options into consideration, the conclusion is this: The most politically savvy of us (so-called "sophisticates") also tend to be more biased politically. As you expose yourself to more information, the combined factors of confirmation bias and disconfirmation bias make you more and more keen to read the side you're leaning towards.

As we learned in political psychology, this leaves us in a lose lose situation: Either (a) You are informed, but extremely biased, or (b) You are not biased, but horribly uninformed. Almost everyone falls into one of these two groups. This, to put it as succinctly as I can, sucks.

A simultaneously scary and hilarious example of this was a political experiment wherein at the onset of the 2003 Iraq war some conservatives were asked if they believed there were WMDs in Iraq. About 30% of these people said yes, they believed there were WMDs in Iraq. Then, they were given a nonbiased, 100% factual investigation showing the extreme lack of evidence the Bush administration had re: WMDs in Iraq. The investigation demonstrated, in a nonpartisan, evidence-based fashion, that Iraq probably never had WMDs.

After reading the report, 60% of them believed there were WMDs in Iraq.

My response to this was slackjawed bewilderment. And this isn't a pocket case, either. Psychologists repeated the experiment with the Bush tax cuts (34% believed the cuts helped the economy, they were given nonbiased, factual information showing that the cuts did no such thing, then 60% believed the cuts helped the economy).

They did another experiment with vaccination, showing groups of anti-vaccinators several kinds of pamphlets: A story about a kid who didn't get vaccinated and got measles, scary pictures of kids with measles, and factual information that showed vaccines do not cause autism. In the former two groups, the opinions didn't really change much. In the final group, the one with factual information, people more strongly resisted vaccination. It's a situation that parodies itself.

We were given a final dose of this when our professor brought up the issue of pandas vs. koalas. This is a pretty unimportant issue. I didn't care about it. She even told us not to care about it. Then she brought up information on why pandas are cuter than koalas, and koalas just sleep all day and do nothing, and pandas are great, there are movies about them (Kung Fu Panda), bamboo is awesome, etc.

As she was talking I started to really, honestly think that koalas are better than pandas. This issue that had been profoundly unimportant a minute ago, an issue I had been explicitly told not to care about, had suddenly become something I cared about. We even had a mini debate in class on which species is better. I put up a valiant fight. But why? Why did I so passionately defend koalas, a species which I now realize is pretty bad?

Because I, too, am pretty bad. But it's okay, because so is everyone else.

-Me

On Being Authentically Present

Here's something my friend Abigail said (not perfectly quoted, as my memory kinda like the Titanic: Seemingly invincible, but actually a complete disaster*) that has stuck with me: "Never miss the chance to let someone know that you are truly, authentically present with them." I dedicate this post to her.

I really like this advice, partly because it made me realize how little people are truly, authentically present with each other, and partly because it made me realize how important it is to try to . Cell phones, stress, multitasking, or just random, unrelated thoughts/priorities can frequently get in the way of truly meaningful human connection.

I think this is why I like board games. When you're playing a board game with someone, you are connected and present with them on some fundamental level. It's different from a video game because it's tactile, immediate, you're all looking each other in the eye; it's different from just hanging out because there's some aspect of the game grounding you all together -- you're all thinking about strategy or in-game events, not about your own individual lives.

One of my favorite high school teachers taught me that when someone is sad, oftentimes the most helpful thing you can do is to just be there for them. Just be present. There's no need to pry, to analyze, to say anything at all -- the mere act of being with them, distractionless, silent, can prove tremendously helpful and therapeutic. Just by being present, you are letting them know that they are a priority in your life; that you understand and respect their privacy; that whenever they want to talk, because this is about them, you will be there, waiting to listen. That's powerful. Silence can speak volumes.

I was on a camping trip when I and someone else sat at the top of a hill admiring the vast expanse of forest stretching out beneath and around us. It was a beautiful scene. We both sat there, silent, and in the silence we both understood that the other person was present, really, authentically present, that both of us had nothing on our minds but the forest in front of us. In that one brief moment we -- well, at least I -- experienced a deep, powerful connection. A connection not romantic, not familial, not even friendly; just human. The moment was as compelling as it was rare.

As David Foster Wallace put it, "Everything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am at the absolute center of the universe; the realest, most important person in existence." There's no way around this reality. But in those rare moments of true, authentic human presence, we can glimpse behind the veil, briefly grasp the fact that we are not at the absolute center of the universe, that there is someone right next to us who is just as human and vulnerable as we are. That is a beautiful thing.

I wish I felt it more.

-Me




*Also surprisingly vulnerable to icebergs.

Paint With All The Colors Of The Wind Song Parody

I don't think you're an ignorant savage

But I've been so many places, there is a lot I know.

Allow me to explain, to expand and help your brain

To let your people bloom and grow!

Bloom and grow

You really own whatever land you land on

The Earth is just a dead thing with no name

And I know ev'ry rock and tree and creature

Has a price, has a value you can claim.

I think the world's most valuable people

Are the people who give jobs to me and you

And if you walk the footsteps of an employer

You'll learn things you never knew you never knew

Have you ever seen a stock price climb to the moon

Or found a young capitalist to thank?

Can you harness the power of compound interest?

Can you take your painted colors to the bank?
Can you take your painted colors to the bank?

Come invest in the future of your people
Learn about the resources in the Earth
You'll be rolling in the riches all around you
And for once, you'll know precisely what they're worth

Free trade and exploration are my brothers
Profit and wealth are my dearest friends
And we are all connected to each other
By a medium of exchange that'll never end

How much wealth does this fertile land hold?
If you shut me down, then you'll never know
And you'll never know your people are doomed to fail
For whether we are white or copper-skinned
We all need the power of modern medicine
Your backwardness and ignorance, rescind

You can walk the Earth and still
All you walk is Earth until
You can take the Earth's resources to the bank

On Intent

Consider the following experiment:

There are two people, Adam and Steve. Adam is given $10 and told to divide the money between himself and Steve. Adam has to give each person a minimum of $1. After he finishes dividing, Steve can choose whether to accept or reject the division. If the Steve rejects, no one gets any money.

Let's say you're Steve, and Adam has partitioned the money so that he will get $9, and you will get $1. What would you do?

In psychology, "rational choice theory" (RCT) is a model of human behavior that says people do things to maximize their own benefit and minimize their own cost. According to RCT, the most rational way for Adam to act is to give himself $9 and Steve $1. This gives him the most benefit. The most rational way for Steve to act is to accept whatever offer Adam gives, because he gets money that way. There is absolutely no cost to these actions by Adam or Steve.

This experiment was actually done, and for the Steves who were offered $1, 30% of them rejected it. This is very interesting to me, because it shows that people are often not perfectly rational actors.

Let's say you had a one-time use button which, when you pressed it, would give you $1, and the experiment was to see whether you'd press that button. Of course you would! Now, let's say that when you press the button, you get $1, and a random stranger receives $9. Would you still press it? I'm going to venture "yes". It's free money.

The difference between the button and the experiment is intent. In the button example, no intent exists. The button is a lifeless thing, a means to an end. Press it and two people get money. But if the button is a person who willingly chose to only give himself more money than you, you are more inclined to hurt him back. Notice how the results of pressing the button and accepting the deal are exactly the same: two people get money. There is no cost. However, with intent added in, everything changes.

This is the same reason first degree murder is more severely punished than manslaughter (although, sidenote: To me, "manslaughter" always sounds way worse than "murder"): Intent. Even though the result is the same (the loss of a life), the intent changes everything.

Intend good things, and don't forget to appreciate the blueness of the sky.

-Me

Just Go Ahead And Don't Read This One

Idea: It's like gum, but bitter. Bitter gum, to remind us of the plight of the proletariat.
Name ideas:
"Juicy Fruits of our labor"
"Stride forward and embrace the revolution"
"Big Red, like our ideal state" (Credit goes to my friend Steven for that one. In related news, it's also the best one.)

Chinese teenagers curse. A lot. I mean they curse so much it's like a verbal tic. Seriously, I still don't think you grasp what it's like. I'm talking almost every other word being "fuck". It's grating and awful to listen to. My roommate couldn't stand it and so terminated a friendship because of it today, which I thought was slightly drastic, but understandable. Here is a sample conversation (translated from Mandarin to English):

A: "Fuck"
B: "Fuck you"
A: "Fucking shitty"
B: "Motherfucker fuck"
A: "Fuck"
B: "Fuck"
A: "Shitty"

So yeah, not exactly gripping dialogue here.

I have no idea why this is the case. I wish it weren't. The cursing is almost surreal, like I've become trapped in an SNL parody skit of teenagers. Except it's not funny.

-Me

On Django Unchained

I recently watched Django Unchained. Here're my thoughts, which are poorly written (I have no idea how to write movie reviews):

The movie is all about escapism. Watching Django, a slave, straight up murder everyone perpetuating the institution of slavery,  is a lot of fun. Django is an unkillable, remorseless, quick-drawing sniper who, upon picking up a rifle, is somehow immediately capable of shooting a moving target several hundred feet away from him. His companion Dr. Scholtz remarks that he is a "natural", but then subjects him to a training montage anyway.

Watching the Scholtz/Django dynamic duo slaughter their way to fortune and justice was a cathartic romp of a good time. Outlaws and slaveowners are gunned down with no effort and all the moral high ground you can imagine. I've never felt this good about seeing faceless mooks explode into blood and gore. I think this is the only action movie I've watched that's made me laugh with the awesomeness of its shootouts. The two men are demigods, and I like that. It's ridiculous in a good way.

The brutality of the reality of slavery made me cringe, which is exactly what a slavery movie should make me do. This movie taught me what mandingo fighting was. It's absolutely disgusting to think that mandingo fighting not only existed at one point, but was somehow normal to people. The mandingo fight scene, the man getting torn apart by dogs, the variety of whipping scenes, and the "hot box" all made me gag. Good! Spare no expense depicting the evil of slavery.

Candie (I forgot his first name) is an interesting character in that he uses that pseudoscience of "phrenology" to justify the status quo. In reality, it's his slave, Steven, that actually figures things out. Steven seems to run the farm. He controls the slaves, which is why he hates Django. Django represents a threat to everything Steven worked so hard to build for himself. Steven is a despicable character, but only if the institution forcing him to act this way isn't also despicable.

Django Unchained is fun, it's escapism, and it's a good reminder of a dark chapter in American history. I liked it.

-Me

On Swallowing Pride

Here're the words that have been bouncing around in my head lately: Swallow your pride.

Everyone I've ever seen -- every janitor, every cashier, every homeless guy muttering to himself -- knows countless things I do not know, has had experiences I can not even imagine, has felt things I have never felt before. I have no doubt that there have and will be people who will experience a depth of happiness I will never experience, shoulder tragedies that would destroy me, fall more deeply in love, and so on.

Every thought I've ever had has in all likelihood been thought by someone else, and not just that, but thought more clearly and with more elegance. Noam Chomsky can articulate the injustices of the world better than thoughts about these injustices can even form in my mind. The same could be said about any subject ever: There will always be many people who can say things about their area of expertise better than I can even think them.

This is amazing. It's amazing to think that, whenever I am in the presence of a stranger, I am in the presence of someone who can teach me something. And I am in the presence of strangers all the time. In fact, there are millions of strangers briefly coexisting all around the world, their lives intersecting for just a moment, a moment filled with possibility.

-Me