This piece was originally published in Wired on May 17, 2018. Sam Harris, one of the original members of the group dubbed the “New Atheists” (by Wired!) 12 years ago, says he doesn’t like tribalism. During his recent, much-discussed debate with Vox founder Ezra Klein about race and IQ, Harris declared that tribalism “is a problem we must outgrow.”
“Cognitive biases are so pervasive and subtle that it’s hubristic to ever claim we’ve escaped them entirely.” Totally – but it seems clear to me that Harris wouldn’t disagree with you. He’s explicitly said he’s as susceptible to bias as anyone else, and continually trying to correct for it.
It’s the specific accusation of ‘tribalism’ that (I think) is warping the conversation. In the context of the Klein/Harris conversation, ‘tribal’ is really synonymous with ‘group identity-based’ – i.e. if you’re white, you’re going to bring a certain perspective and everything you say on any issue will be affected by that (as Klein argues). Harris believes it is possible to say things that aren’t dependent on your group identity, and I’m pretty sure you believe that too. Surely outgrowing the problem of tribalism is part of how we avert the apocalypse, at least in the sense of expanding our sense of the tribe to the whole planet?
I’ve listened to Waking Up, now Making Sense, with Sam Harris for well over 5 years. Sam’s greatest character flaw is his lack of self awareness. I have a lot of love for Sam, but he’s much better at monologues than he is at listening, he rarely addresses the exact critique being made of him, and he relies on well worn talking points that longtime listeners of his like me have heard dozens and dozens of times. I’ve been listening to and reading Sam for longer than most people have known his name, and whether or not he is tribal or anti-tribal, I think what’s undeniable is simply that Sam is bad at recognizing his own bias. Join the club. What disappoints me is that as a mindfulness teacher, which thanks to Sam I’ve been practicing myself for a few years now, this should all be obvious to Sam.
After the podcast aired Decoding the Gurus hosted a live hangout for Patreon patrons, you can go watch it now if you subscribe. What really stuck out to them is that in the world of academic dialogue there is a back and forth, give and take, one listens and learns and updates their beliefs accordingly when reasonable arguments are made. Listen to Sam talking to Chris and Matt and you hear none of that. Sam is literally talking at them, frequently interrupting, and reacting impulsively without really considering whether or not a good point is being made. Chris and Matt made a lot of good points, but you never would have known that just listening to Sam.
I don’t say any of that to dismiss Sam, I just think he’s doing a disservice to himself and his fans (like me) when he champions logic and reason and then so glaringly fails to apply it to himself.
“Cognitive biases are so pervasive and subtle that it’s hubristic to ever claim we’ve escaped them entirely.” Totally – but it seems clear to me that Harris wouldn’t disagree with you. He’s explicitly said he’s as susceptible to bias as anyone else, and continually trying to correct for it.
It’s the specific accusation of ‘tribalism’ that (I think) is warping the conversation. In the context of the Klein/Harris conversation, ‘tribal’ is really synonymous with ‘group identity-based’ – i.e. if you’re white, you’re going to bring a certain perspective and everything you say on any issue will be affected by that (as Klein argues). Harris believes it is possible to say things that aren’t dependent on your group identity, and I’m pretty sure you believe that too. Surely outgrowing the problem of tribalism is part of how we avert the apocalypse, at least in the sense of expanding our sense of the tribe to the whole planet?
I’ve listened to Waking Up, now Making Sense, with Sam Harris for well over 5 years. Sam’s greatest character flaw is his lack of self awareness. I have a lot of love for Sam, but he’s much better at monologues than he is at listening, he rarely addresses the exact critique being made of him, and he relies on well worn talking points that longtime listeners of his like me have heard dozens and dozens of times. I’ve been listening to and reading Sam for longer than most people have known his name, and whether or not he is tribal or anti-tribal, I think what’s undeniable is simply that Sam is bad at recognizing his own bias. Join the club. What disappoints me is that as a mindfulness teacher, which thanks to Sam I’ve been practicing myself for a few years now, this should all be obvious to Sam.
After the podcast aired Decoding the Gurus hosted a live hangout for Patreon patrons, you can go watch it now if you subscribe. What really stuck out to them is that in the world of academic dialogue there is a back and forth, give and take, one listens and learns and updates their beliefs accordingly when reasonable arguments are made. Listen to Sam talking to Chris and Matt and you hear none of that. Sam is literally talking at them, frequently interrupting, and reacting impulsively without really considering whether or not a good point is being made. Chris and Matt made a lot of good points, but you never would have known that just listening to Sam.
I don’t say any of that to dismiss Sam, I just think he’s doing a disservice to himself and his fans (like me) when he champions logic and reason and then so glaringly fails to apply it to himself.