A few years ago, while on a train, I had a conversation with a local, city politician. We agreed on a few things, disagreed on a few things, and there were a few things I really knew far less about that I cared to admit.

“I think it is a good idea to revisit things we believe from time to time and test them with the greatest scrutiny we can muster.”

The above is a paraphrase of what he told me. He indicated that few people take the above challenge seriously. When presented with information that contradicts our established viewpoint, we look for whatever argument we can find to maintain our position. We are intellectually dishonest - with ourselves and with those we disagree with.

Steven Pinker cites a study in his book, Rationality, that proves that this is universal. It can be distressing.

That is why, in a previous piece, I had mentioned my friend George and the question he wished he asked the politician we met in Pasadena.

“When is the last time you changed your mind on an issue and what prompted that change?”

I took the aforementioned city politician’s challenge seriously. In doing so, my mind changed about a few things. Not immediately… change is painful. It requires you to arrive at a conclusion that you were misled, mistaken, and, the hardest part, willfully ignorant in many cases. It required me to admit I was wrong.

The byproduct is that I am far happier placing scrutiny on everything. On the flipside, it has largely left me without a “team” that I root for. As I indicated in my prior piece on science, the only policies I want to see politicians presenting need to be effective and information-based.

I may share more about where I sit with various cultural and political positions at some future time. But for now, a song.

"Close that door behind me, first morning light
Headed down that highway and opened up my eyes
And it don’t help me sleep none but I’m feeling free now
Left the altar stained with those sacred cows"

I wrote my song, Ordinary Man, reflecting sacrificing my sacred cows. Take a listen… let me know what you think.

Thanks for dropping by.

Matthew Moran
December 4, 2022

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Ordinary Man Lyrics

VERSE
Close that door behind me, first morning light
Headed down that highway and opened up my eyes
And it don’t help me sleep none but I’m feeling free now
Left the altar stained with those sacred cows

VERSE
Setting out to find what still remains
Of those fairy tales & fables of my younger days
Maybe they’re just visions of what never was
Maybe they’re the prison, maybe they’re the cause

CHORUS
I’m not a hero making my last stand
I might be fool but I’m not going back again
But I’ll play my song every chance I can
And ode to every lost and lonely soul
From an ordinary man

VERSE
Taking names, taking stock
Making nice until I’m not
And all this bullshit, it fills the air
Smells like anger, tastes like, “I don’t care.”

The Arrogant Sage

Sacrificing Sacred Cows