1. Find an article, blogpost, or facebook status written by someone who not only disagrees with you, but is also openly hostile and insulting.
2. Don't read it until you've looked over this statement:
"It is only when we are in the habit of recognizing our opinions as a partial experience seen through our stereotypes that we become truly tolerant of an opponent." --Walter Lippmann
3. And heard what I have to say about it:
This also means that if our opponents refuse to see their own opinions as only one of many ways of perceiving the world, they aren't going to be tolerant either. I found this incredibly helpful in reading a critique of Lippmann done by the full-on snob H.L. Mencken. Usually Mencken’s name-calling would make my blood boil, BUT reading the Lippmann article first made it kind of nice to see how this diatribe proved Lippmann's very point. Mencken clearly has a set of stereotypes (particularly that the working man is a near-Neanderthal) that he won't look past. He’s writing for people who already agree with him and there is no use arguing. This is sort of refreshing in its own right. Here’s how:
4. NOW read your article, blogpost or facebook status, keeping in mind that the author is NOT going to change their position, and certainly not because you wasted time getting mad at them. This is an excellent opportunity to laugh at their bluster instead of spiking your blood pressure.
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