Shownotes
Today, we dive into a striking revelation from Pew Research that has us questioning our perceptions of morality in America. A staggering 53% of Americans believe that their fellow citizens possess bad morals, a sentiment that sets us apart from 24 other countries surveyed, where the majority viewed their neighbors more positively. It's a thought-provoking moment, as we grapple with the implications of these beliefs while still relying on those very individuals in our daily lives. We’ll explore how this pervasive negativity might stem from our increasingly insular way of living, leading to a disconnect between our perceptions and reality. Join me as we unpack the data, challenge our assumptions, and seek to understand the moral landscape of our communities. The Daily Note dives deep into a profound question about societal perceptions of morality, sparked by a recent Pew Research survey. The staggering statistic that 53% of Americans believe their fellow citizens possess bad morals stands out against global counterparts, where the majority view their neighbors positively. This episode explores the implications of such beliefs, suggesting that this insular perspective may lead to a fractured culture and divisive politics. As we navigate through our daily lives, the hosts challenge us to reconsider the stories we tell ourselves about those around us, emphasizing the need for connection and understanding to combat the pervasive fear of the unknown. The dialogue is rich and engaging, urging listeners to reflect on their interactions and perceptions of community in a rapidly changing world.
Takeaways:
- In a world full of rapid news cycles, pausing to reflect helps us stay informed and engaged.
- The stark contrast of moral perceptions between Americans and citizens of 24 other countries raises significant questions about our societal views.
- Pew Research's survey results indicate a troubling belief among Americans that their fellow citizens possess bad morals, which is unique among surveyed nations.
- Our disconnection from our neighbors may lead to a skewed perception of morality, contributing to societal division and distrust.
- Feeling disconnected from those around us can distort our view of community ethics, impacting our relationships and interactions with others.
- Understanding and engaging with the people in our lives can help bridge the gap of mistrust and promote a more unified community.
Links referenced in this episode:
Companies mentioned in this episode:
- Pew Research
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
Transcripts
It.
Speaker B:News moves pretty fast, and if you don't stop and look around, you might miss it.
Speaker B:That's why the Daily Note slows down the news.
Speaker B:No jerseys, no masters, just better questions about America.
Speaker B:This is the Daily Note with James A.
Speaker B:Brown.
Speaker A:Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, boys and girls, hello.
Speaker A:Welcome to Daily Note Live.
Speaker A:I'm James A.
Speaker A:Brown.
Speaker A:We are on air and online from sea to shining sea.
Speaker A:And you could be anywhere in the world, but you're here with me.
Speaker A:And I thank you for that, sincerely.
Speaker A:You can check out my work@jamesabrown.net, that's jamesabrown.net, we've got a great show for you today.
Speaker A:And it all starts with our top line.
Speaker A:The top line, 53%.
Speaker A:That's the number.
Speaker A:Now, I've been reading this pile of data from the good folks at Pew Research.
Speaker A:It has left me with so much to discuss with you in the coming weeks and months, maybe years to come.
Speaker A:The biggest questions from that pile are in our top line.
Speaker A:Are we surrounded by bad people?
Speaker A:No, I'm not kidding.
Speaker A:I mean it.
Speaker A:It's a real question.
Speaker A:When I say bad people, I mean morally bad people.
Speaker A:Is that true?
Speaker A:And if it is, how do we know that?
Speaker A:Especially in an era where we are increasingly alone in our spaces, we don't know our neighbors names.
Speaker A:And if we're wrong, why did we tell researchers this?
Speaker A:How do we come to that conclusion?
Speaker A:I'll walk you through what Pew found over the course of this hour.
Speaker A:So here's what happened.
Speaker A:Pew Research released this massive survey.
Speaker A:More than 30,000 people in 25 countries, countries on every continent, rich countries and poor countries, democracies and not quite democracies.
Speaker A:And they asked everyone the same basic question, do the people in your country have good morals or bad morals?
Speaker A:Not the government or the politicians or the celebrities, the people, your people, the people we see every day.
Speaker A:And in 24 of those 25 countries, the answer was the same.
Speaker A:More people said more good than bad.
Speaker A:And it wasn't really close.
Speaker A:In Canada, 92% said their fellow Canadians are morally good, 92%.
Speaker A:In Indonesia, the same number roughly.
Speaker A:In Mexico, it was about 80%.
Speaker A:In the United Kingdom, it was 82%.
Speaker A:In Germany, it was in the 70s.
Speaker A:Even in Israel, you know, they've got reasons to be angry at each other.
Speaker A:There's lots of reasons.
Speaker A:It was 68%.
Speaker A:And then there was us.
Speaker A:53% of American adults told Pew researchers that their fellow Americans have bad morals, bad morals and bad ethics, not 50 50, not a slim plurality.
Speaker A:A majority of us don't think that our neighbors have good ethics.
Speaker A:We were the only country out of 25 in this study to say that.
Speaker A:Now, I want to be specific about what Pew asked here because the wording matters.
Speaker A:In any poll, they asked whether people in this country have good morals or in ethics or bad ones.
Speaker A:That's a character judgment.
Speaker A:Not do you disagree with these people?
Speaker A:Because plenty of us disagree with each other.
Speaker A:Not do you vote differently than your neighbors?
Speaker A:Because many of us do that.
Speaker A:That's, are they bad?
Speaker A:Do they have a bad moral framework?
Speaker A:And I want you to think about what that means for a second because it doesn't mean that 53% of Americans say I have bad morals.
Speaker A:No one said that about themselves.
Speaker A:No one is talking about them.
Speaker A:They said the people around them have bad morals.
Speaker A:They say that your neighbor.
Speaker A:You, you are saying.
Speaker A:I am saying that your neighbor does that.
Speaker A:The person in front of us at the grocery store does.
Speaker A:The person behind them, the person at the next register, every other person in every car you passed.
Speaker A:We looked around the country and we decided, yep, I don't trust them.
Speaker A:Most of these people have bad morals.
Speaker A:So we're the only country on earth, at least in this study.
Speaker A:I'm sure there are probably others where that happened.
Speaker A:Hmm.
Speaker A:Now think about that drive you made last week or that walk you made up your street.
Speaker A:Think about the person that made you coffee this morning or your co worker in the cubicle next to you, your brother in law, the parent next to you at the school pickup line.
Speaker A:Every other one of them that you encounter.
Speaker A:Most of us think has bad morals.
Speaker A:And here's the strange part, at least for me, we did this while simultaneously living next to these people, working with these people, depending on these people to teach our kids and take care of our cars and deliver our packages.
Speaker A:We're convicting them.
Speaker A:We're telling them that you have bad morals.
Speaker A:And I should share.
Speaker A:You share with you that Pew has never asked this question before.
Speaker A:So we don't know if this is a new concept.
Speaker A:We know that this is what we are.
Speaker A:But I'll tell you what I think and we can.
Speaker A:I'll pull this apart over the next few minutes.
Speaker A:I think we got sold a story and I think we bought it.
Speaker A:I think the receipt is sitting right there at that 53% mark.
Speaker A:I'm going to show you over the next few segments exactly why I believe that.
Speaker A:Because I think that we are not looking at the world around us clearly.
Speaker A:I think that we are so insular culturally these days that we.
Speaker A:That we don't have a sense of who is actually around us and who and the basis of their morality.
Speaker A:I believe that we, we are so inward, we think so internally these days that we have no idea.
Speaker A:Who the people around us truly are, whether they're good or bad.
Speaker A:And we've come to the conclusion that we should fear them because we don't know them.
Speaker A:I believe that that is the source, or one of the sources at least, of our increasingly divisive politics, of our increasingly.
Speaker A:Fractured culture.
Speaker A:We don't look at the entirety of the world anymore.
Speaker A:We're aware of them, but we don't know them.
Speaker A:And that lack of awareness, that lack of experience with the world around us, yet we know it's there, but we don't actually want to interact with it because we are afraid of it.
Speaker A:I believe it's led us to some faulty conclusions.
Speaker A:Conclusions that I fear the long term consequences of.
Speaker A:We'll talk about some of those in the moments to come.
Speaker A:This is the daily note live.
Speaker A:I'm james a.
Speaker A:Brown.
Speaker A:Thanks for being with me.
Speaker A:More to come.
