Are All Arguments About The Same Thing Fundamentally? | Hacker News Reader

Are All Arguments About The Same Thing Fundamentally?

3 pointsdavemel372 comments

I was reading through the discussions here on HN about Buffer's open salaries.

The two sides are. a)open is good and creates a fair environment. or b) open is bad because human nature will get involved and things will get ugly...

This is fundamentally the difference between democrats and republicans. Democrats have a positive perspective of an idealistic world, and republicans say, we have to face facts and acknowledge human natures role.

Same goes for pretty much every disagreement I can find. One side has an optimistic perspective, with short term results in mind and the other has the long game in mind, and wants to account for all the horrible things that might happen...

I am not saying one is right or wrong, although I certainly have my own personal opinion...

I just wonder if most theoretical, and political disagreements are all fundamentally about the same thing...

Whether we are short term optimistic thinkers, or long term pessimistic thinkers.

First, I wouldn't equate those positions with US political parties: consider their views on climate change, for example.

Second, some arguments are about the nature of human nature. If you think it is human nature to give everyone a fair chance, you will conclude that most programmers being male must be because men are generally better at or more interested in programming than are women. If you think it is human nature that there are no great cognitive differences between men and women, at least when it comes to programming, you will conclude that women are being discouraged or otherwise being unfairly held back from becoming programmers.

Human nature isn't the same for everyone, think about fight or flight reaction. So some people demonstrate violently, and others peacefully.

I think the people who have a long-term pessimistic opinion are only that way because they perceive what humanity is based on their own predispositions. Same is true for long-term optimistic perspective (even though that was omitted as a choice in original post).

Being short-sighted or having a long term perspective aren't coupled with optimism/pessimism. And politically both parties participate in both - most people only care about unemployment within next couple of years, not unemployment for next 70 years, so politicians have to cater to us, and they are conflicting solutions.

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