The Perils Of Ideology

Photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash

Ideologies are a useful mobilizing force. They rally our communities and allow resources to be effectively deployed towards a common goal. 

Everyone involved knows exactly what they need to do and the ends towards which they’re working. Even when their individual tasks are less clear, they can still contribute to the greater mission and keep moving the ball forward - because they know what forward is. 

But when that ideology begins to get in the way of progress i.e. when it flies in the face of the facts on the ground, then there comes a point when the ideology itself is the problem.

I accept that that tipping point isn’t easy to identify - and, given the stakes, difficult to accept. After all, the time when ideologies most matter are when the stakes are highest, when the odds are stacked against us, and the meaning of, and need for, that ideology appears to be at its highest.

But there has to come a point when the facts on the ground tell you otherwise. When the data simply doesn’t support the results, or when the underlying principles and values simply aren’t being realized. 

At that point, perhaps the answer is not to double down, but to let go of our ideologies in their most absolute sense and look towards the practical path forward. Not one that abandons the proposed benefits, but one that begins to capture as much of those benefits as possible and establish forward momentum. 

Again, there are no easy answers here. Letting go of our deeply held, entrenched beliefs isn’t an easy thing to do. Often, it requires a rethink of our world view. That’s hard, but often it’s necessary. The only alternative is that we grow more cynical, more angry about the ‘unjustness’ of the world, and, ultimately, lose hope. 

Positive, forward momentum. Not an all or nothing philosophy. Win a few battles here, a few battles there, with our eyes on the ultimate prize, even if the timeline gets pushed out.