Recasting Public Debate to Actually Resolve Issues
Think “Moderates!” draws on two social truths: 1) we cannot resolve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them (Albert Einstein) and 2) the problems resulting from the actions of extremists can only be rooted out by strong, persistent, and determined actions by moderates (Martin Luther King Jr.). Thus, Think “Moderates!” points out that to offset the problem-creating thinking currently driving public debate, we must recast public debate. We must draw moderates into the debate and give prominence to the problem-solving and reconciling behaviors they typically exemplify in group settings. And we must also give prominence to the kind of thinking moderates bring to the table. Think “Moderates!” starts with what well-meaning extremists have turned us into: a society that is confused and unsure of who we are or what we stand for. Then, it redirects our attention to moderates whose distinctive attributes point to them as the solution. Finally, it discloses the seven tasks facing moderates as society’s majority, tasks that would position them to be the force majeure in decision-making they were meant to be as the majority. Think “Moderates!” focuses on the inherent potential of moderate behavior to resolve issues. Moderates, for instance, are the only group capable of reaching consensus. Also, their behavior always have a greater impact on society than even the conflict between extremists. For even when they periodically drop out of public life—which they are famous for doing—their behavior creates the conditions that gives smaller groups disproportionate influence over politics and culture. But when they fully engage, their behavior resolves problems and prevents the conflict between culture warriors from throwing our public life off-balance. Moderates wield the power of the majority.
