What's Our Problem?: A Self-Help Book for Societies

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The thesis is clearly laid out and is compelling. That is, there is more to politics than a simple right/left divide. There is a full matrix, with progressive and clear thinking on each end of the spectrum, as well as emotionally driven argumentative silliness on each end of the spectrum. I totally agree! It makes sense. And the illustrations are a lot of fun and fully inspired. Tim lays out good examples of this thinking, and he even touches on the recent downward slide of the Republican Party into the emotionally driven argumentative ridiculous stuff that we have all witnessed since about 2015. I thought he was brave for going there, as I feared it might alienate half of his readership to do so. Go down to the next rung on the ladder and your higher mind is still in control but your primitive mind is having a bit more of a say. Let’s think of this as “thinking like a sports fan”– you know and respect the rules of the game, but you really want your team to win. You’re no longer impartial and you’re subject to the confirmation biases that a first-rung thinker would avoid.

In low-rung politics, none of this is possible. Urban calls it “Political Disney World.” In such a world, each party has its own narrative that looks as perfect as a Disney movie, like Aladdin or The Lion King. Each party member is the underdog hero, going up against “pure evil.” Now, rather than two different parties, poring over a map together, we have two loud and angry giants, shouting at one another. So, with no consistent external threat, Americans have a tendency for political infighting. This has led to the ideological purification of political parties as individuals fill their need to band together against a common threat. It’s here we find the concentrated tribal divide between the American left and right.Let’s apply our ladder metaphor to extreme political views. It’s easy to look at fundamentalist attitudes and talk about the far right or far left, but a better way is to think of them as lower left, or lower right on the ladder – it’s how they think, not what they think. Between 2013 and 2016, Tim Urban became one of the world’s most popular bloggers, writing dozens of viral, long-form articlesabout everything from AI to colonizing Mars to procrastination. Then, he turned his attention to a new topic: the society around him. Why was everything such a mess? Why was everyone acting like such a baby? When did things get so tribal? Why do humans do this stuff?

full disclosure: i’m not completely finished yet. buuuut i don’t care; this book was 6 years in the making and worth every second of that wait, worth sacrificing every other blog topic he couldn’t write about while creating this.

Customer reviews

The problem is, we’re not just reading this book – we’re writing it. And at the moment, it’s being written by a bunch of spoiled, immature toddlers. You see, society isn’t maturing in the way that we’d like. Tribalism, false news, floundering institutions, and political division are just some of the problems that define the tumultuous times we live in. When you’re on the top rung, your higher mind is in complete control. Here, you logically observe evidence and reach conclusions with a clear emotional detachment and a desire to find the truth –no matter what it is. Let’s call this “thinking like a scientist.” These 5 screenshots from the book demonstrate some of the concepts discussed above. Descriptions of screenshots 3-5 below: This massive topic sent Tim tumbling down his deepest rabbit hole yet, through mountains of history, evolutionary psychology, political theory, neuroscience, and modern-day political movements, as he tried to figure out the answer to a simple question: What's our problem? The massive technological rise has added fuel to this fire through the ease at which we can now find and consume media. When news is designed to entertain a specific group or push a political agenda, it’s easy for people to tune into the relevant media outlet for their echo chamber.

First of all, it's one of the very few books where the author doesn't take a stance. I mean - a few times he expresses his (liberal left) affiliations, but it does NOT impact the judgments made in this book. He proposes a simplified MENTAL MODEL to take a look at today's socio-political posture spectrum & he succeeds in showing that exactly the same mechanisms work in both ways. He nails it when he shows that it's not really left vs right, but this conflict actually spans 2 dimensions (add: low-rung vs high-rung). He does so well in using common sense to show that there is STILL space to use reason in a civilized discussion - he also captures why this is not happening. Oh, I've made soooo many notes, so many highlights - I don't remember noting down so much stuff since ... well, a long time ago.

When the Higher Mind is winning the tug-of-war, its staff illuminates our minds with clarity, including awareness of the Primitive Mind and what it’s up to. The Higher Mind understands that primitive pleasures like sex, food, and all-in-good-fun tribalism like sports fandom are enjoyable, and often necessary, parts of a human life. And like a good pet owner, the Higher Mind is more than happy to let the Primitive Mind have its fun.” Scientist — We truly think for ourselves. We gather information, form hypotheses, and are open to changing our mind whenever new evidence appears.