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A brief thread, sparked by this article, in which a Briton is happy to see 'economic apocalypse' with a No Deal Brexit.
These attitudes don't surprise me and exist on all sides of the spectrum. We just find different ways to justify it.
theguardian.com/politics/2019/…
These attitudes don't surprise me and exist on all sides of the spectrum. We just find different ways to justify it.
theguardian.com/politics/2019/…
The key difference between Remain and Leave campaigns was (and is) this:
Remain was about facts and evidence, about keeping the status quo.
Leave was an avalanche of emotional triggers: change, empowerment ('take control') and fears.
In Facts Vs Emotions, latter always wins.
Remain was about facts and evidence, about keeping the status quo.
Leave was an avalanche of emotional triggers: change, empowerment ('take control') and fears.
In Facts Vs Emotions, latter always wins.
Leave also told people mini-stories about the future: some positive, some fearful. Leavers picked stories ('fantasies') they liked and developed an emotional attachment to them.
Once that happens, people justify almost anything to carry on believing. Even 'economic apocalypse'.
Once that happens, people justify almost anything to carry on believing. Even 'economic apocalypse'.
This is at heart of why, despite negative news, Leavers still *believe*. Why Tory support still holds up.
And if you attack that belief, the emotional attachment becomes STRONGER not weaker. They believe even more all this is scaremongering.
This is why ERG group so influential
And if you attack that belief, the emotional attachment becomes STRONGER not weaker. They believe even more all this is scaremongering.
This is why ERG group so influential
It is amazing to me that even now, Remainers have broadly neither understood this process nor truly asked what it takes to change minds.
Because Remainers have clung even stronger (emotionally) to their own world, which they see as driven by facts. The divide has hardened.
Because Remainers have clung even stronger (emotionally) to their own world, which they see as driven by facts. The divide has hardened.
I'm not saying the Remainers are bad. I'm just saying we have done an awful job of changing minds.
We're not superior in any way, we make the same mistakes. We also cling on to narratives about the world driven more by emotion than fact. We like to believe otherwise but... 🤷🏽♂️
We're not superior in any way, we make the same mistakes. We also cling on to narratives about the world driven more by emotion than fact. We like to believe otherwise but... 🤷🏽♂️
Stories are powerful because we remember them. Emotion is powerful because it moves us far more than facts or logic.
Leavers still looks at us like a bunch of clueless idiots... and frankly we are. At every stage they have understood how to move people better than we have.
Leavers still looks at us like a bunch of clueless idiots... and frankly we are. At every stage they have understood how to move people better than we have.
Naturally, many Remainers won't like what I'm saying because no one likes being told they are doing it wrong.
This is why Leavers have been ignoring the bad news as 'project fear'. These natural tendencies exist on all sides.
This is why Leavers have been ignoring the bad news as 'project fear'. These natural tendencies exist on all sides.
I'm glad you asked. First, avoid simple mistakes:
- don't belittle them
- don't use 'facts' or emphasise that point. You're saying they're ignorant.
- use people they trust not ones we are comfortable with, to communicate
- don't belittle them
- don't use 'facts' or emphasise that point. You're saying they're ignorant.
- use people they trust not ones we are comfortable with, to communicate
But the broader dilemma for Remain is still there:
What's our positive / inspirational vision of the future, told in relatable stories?
We don't have them, so we spend all our time attacking Leavers instead, which ensures debate is on their terms.
What's our positive / inspirational vision of the future, told in relatable stories?
We don't have them, so we spend all our time attacking Leavers instead, which ensures debate is on their terms.
The Leave side has a positive vision:
'Britain was great in the past, we can go back to that glory'.
We can ridicule it or hate it. But it works. And our hatred only makes them stronger because we have no positive emotional story to tell in response.
'Britain was great in the past, we can go back to that glory'.
We can ridicule it or hate it. But it works. And our hatred only makes them stronger because we have no positive emotional story to tell in response.
