What Is The Biggest Misconception That People Defend Daily?

[starshine]

Let's face it: it is not too easy to get neutral facts even as we watch the news of what is happening in our own country. Agendas are pushed, emotion is thrown in the mix, mentalities are a strong subjective force, etc. But even worse than this, people many times just have to hear about an opinion (that they hold as fact) one time and then they start defending it in debates, trying no further to get a better understanding of a situation.

What are those misconceptions you get confronted with when you try to discuss world affairs with people around you? And the biggest/ most dangerous one?

 

[missbishi]

For me, it's Islam! People around me can't seem to grasp the fact that the terrorists are a minority. Most Muslims abhor them and feel as though they are bringing the religion into disrepute.

 

[PoRiRam]

I agree with missbishi! That was actually my first thought when I read the topic. For me, I think that it's the fact they live in an area where it's normal to be raised as an extremist. If history had gone a different course then it would have been very possible for, say, an extremist Christian nation or something to have risen from the earth and terrorized a Muslim nation. In this case it's the other way around.
There are plenty of wonderful Muslim people out there and many of them go through things that are absolutely unacceptable.

 

[starshine]

I agree with missbishi! That was actually my first thought when I read the topic. For me, I think that it's the fact they live in an area where it's normal to be raised as an extremist. If history had gone a different course then it would have been very possible for, say, an extremist Christian nation or something to have risen from the earth and terrorized a Muslim nation. In this case it's the other way around.
There are plenty of wonderful Muslim people out there and many of them go through things that are absolutely unacceptable.

Yeah, this. Powerful nations and winners get to write history and to prioritize their version of "good and evil". I mean, I'm pretty sure that in the Middle East, the US is *not* seen as the big hero. But it's so hard to get a good nuanced understanding of conflicts when we are at home watching the news!

 

[PoRiRam]

Yeah, this. Powerful nations and winners get to write history and to prioritize their version of "good and evil". I mean, I'm pretty sure that in the Middle East, the US is *not* seen as the big hero. But it's so hard to get a good nuanced understanding of conflicts when we are at home watching the news!

That's a really good point too. You can't really even tell what's the actual truth when it comes down to history textbooks because you never know who was actually telling the truth. Everything we know comes from the winners of history, not the losers. Even history is biased, at least a little bit.
Especially the news we all watch at home, lol.

 

[kestas57]

That the US is the policeman of the world. Sorry but this is not the case. Sure, the US has done a LOT of good for the world, but the US also tends to "police" the areas which interests them. This is not to say that this is necessarily a bad thing in itself because it falls within the international relations idea of realism (countries are self-interested). If we take a look at conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, both of these were headed by the US in the form of the wars that took place there due to the US's interest in keeping terrorists at bay.

 

[starshine]

That the US is the policeman of the world. Sorry but this is not the case. Sure, the US has done a LOT of good for the world, but the US also tends to "police" the areas which interests them. This is not to say that this is necessarily a bad thing in itself because it falls within the international relations idea of realism (countries are self-interested). If we take a look at conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, both of these were headed by the US in the form of the wars that took place there due to the US's interest in keeping terrorists at bay.

Let's be honest and say it was about more than "keeping terrorists at bay".

The US is more than self-interested and hypocritical when it comes to this sort of things. They make it about ideology "Oh! We cannot let X nation suffer! Oh! This other Y nation is abusing power and going against human rights!"

But we also know that places like Saudi Arabia, Israel and China are also "bullies" and yet we support and trade with them because it is profitable. Then again -- it has also been noticed a few times that policemen do just that, profiling certain people and turning a blind eye when friends do it. So the US could be the policeman of the world -- a corrupt policeman, that is.

 

[xTinx]

Lately, I've been hearing about how China's a "sleeping giant" economy-wise and military-wise. So just because a country has more people and more resources that doesn't mean it already has a default advantage in times of war. The Vietnamese overpowered the Americans with nothing but primitive weapons and knowledge of the terrain.

 

[saastil]

That "Islam" is a "violent" religion. Please. Has anyone who says that ever read the first testament of the bible? Talk about vicious, evil, violent and cruel! The fact that people can't understand that a minority is a minority no matter how violent it is makes me crazy. Just people there are racist, militant, fundamentalist white rednecks in the USA doesn't mean that we're all crazy bible thumping psychopaths.

 

[kestas57]

That "Islam" is a "violent" religion. Please. Has anyone who says that ever read the first testament of the bible? Talk about vicious, evil, violent and cruel! The fact that people can't understand that a minority is a minority no matter how violent it is makes me crazy. Just people there are racist, militant, fundamentalist white rednecks in the USA doesn't mean that we're all crazy bible thumping psychopaths.

Islam isn't necessarily a violent religion. It's the misguided people that follow it that make it seem to be this way. Just take a look at ISIS.

 

[KimberlyD]

I have a list actually.

The US runs things (be grateful that is a HUGE misconception, we are just the ones everyone calls when they have their d$%&s in a pickle jar. We don't run s%$# and don't want to.)
The US is a economic power house (yeeeahhhh..... tell that to the people, we must have missed that memo)
All Muslims are terrorist (Islamist Extremist thank you very much)

That would have to be the list.