Reason and Love might seem to have nothing to do with each other, but interestingly enough, anger can be dispelled by being open and curious – i.e. emotion checked by reason.
High emotions (such as Fear) or strong convictions can lead to motivated reasoning – where pre-existing attitudes or beliefs lead to rejecting factual information. 1 This can happen to anyone of any political persuasion. We reach conclusions that support and validate our beliefs and attitudes.
By approaching the world from a place of Love, you are more likely to accept favorable information about a person or situation – you see the good in the situation. Hopefully, coming from a place of Love does not blind you to the negative aspects, but still allows you to have a realistic view. This usually happens with healthy parents. They Love their children and see the good in them, but can also see when their child makes a mistake or has dysfunctional qualities.
Let’s approach the world with healthy, open, curious Love. It’s the only chance we have to dispel the hate in the world…
- Stentor Danielson, “Debitage: On Anti-Trump Motivated Reasoning,” January 24, 2017, http://blog.debitage.net/2017/01/on-anti-trump-motivated-reasoning.html.
- Chris Mooney, “The Science of Why We Don’t Believe Science,” Mother Jones, May/June 2011, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2011/03/denial-science-chris-mooney.
- Zack Kopplin and Danielle Ofri, “Why Fact-Checking Donald Trump Backfires,” Slate, December 30, 2015, http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2015/12/fact_checking_trump_can_backfire_due_to_motivated_reasoning.html.