Introduction - Contrarians, Understanding > Agreement, and Free Speech

Hello, I’m very excited to welcome you to Bad Canadians!

I’ll be your host, Jared Michael.

Here at Bad Canadians we will attempt to understand Canada’s contrarians. We believe contrarians are sometimes the only people holding valuable information the rest of society desperately needs.

The historical record is overflowing with stories of people who started off as heretics and pariahs, and after they were properly understood, were raised to the positions of pioneers and brave champions. The current moment is no different. Our brave champions are out there.

Somewhere.

There will always be contrarians, and always a certain percentage of them will have the knowledge we are looking for. We ignore them at our peril. That said, not all contrarians are made equal. In fact, we can probably safely say most contrarian ideas are not worth pursuing. In that vein, as your host, I’ll try each show to bring on a guest I believe is worth listening to. I may not always get it right, but to me, that is a risk worth taking.

I thought I would give you a heads up on a couple of the reoccurring ideas or themes you may encounter on this show. This is the foundation I’m building the show on, but I’m prepared to follow compelling ideas wherever they may lead. I know where we are starting from, but I’m not exactly sure where we are going. 

The first idea most relevant to this podcast is the belief I have that understanding can be greater than agreement. 

What I mean by this is, we generally enter contentious conversations with the goal of having our opponent acknowledge the superiority of our argument. We are looking to defeat our opponent’s arguments and replace them with ours. It is adversarial and often involves people’s deepest beliefs. It’s a recipe for anger, defensiveness and hostility. 

Good times!

Now, a small number of people are indeed wired to find this a good time. I like nothing more than smashing ideas together to see which ones last, but if you are like me, you have probably discovered most people are not built this way. Most people do not find having their deepest beliefs challenged, a good time.

Luckily, I no longer think this is our only way to discuss such matters. This stems from my belief that the majority of the outrage, divisiveness and tribalism we are currently experiencing in the public discourse arises from misunderstandings and misattributed motives. When people do not properly understand those they disagree with, they are more prone to attach hateful, selfish, or evil motivations to their opponent’s actions.

In reality, when we get off the screens and into real life, we discover the vast majority of people, no matter their political stripe, income level, or cultural background, are simply yearning for a world tomorrow that has a little less unnecessary suffering and a little more personal agency.

If you identify with one side of the political spectrum because you’re certain the other side is full of crazies, Bad Canadians is for you. 

The second idea I would like to mention will not be surprising, given the subject matter we’re covering. The importance of free speech and the problems with censorship. Unfortunately for all of us, free speech in Canada is under attack unlike any time in my near half a century of being a Canadian. Canada appears to be the tip of the censorship spear, as it leads the way with new hate speech laws, social media controlling legislation, head scratching equity measures, and new cultural norms designed to “call out” wrongthink. 

The Overton window needs a serious cleaning.

The virtues of free speech have long been argued and understood. Growing up, every liberal or leftie I knew was a staunch defender of free speech; from Noam Chomsky to Bill Clinton. People understood once you are no longer allowed to argue with words, people will fight with fists. Once the fighting begins, others try and bring them back to the table… to talk. It’s best if we can skip the violent stage, when at all possible. 

As a society, we’ve not figured out a better way of solving our disagreements, short of using force. Historically, many have preferred using force. Now, more than ever, we need to give voice to the ideas we believe in. They will not win on their own. 

You will hear people say, the pendulum has swung too far in this or that direction. But there is no pendulum. You cannot travel to Zurich and see the pendulum, and where it’s at in its giant arc. You cannot take a selfie with the pendulum. Course correction does not happen on its own. We cannot just sit back and wait for it to happen. Free speech is a historical anomaly. It is not the norm. We cannot not take it for granted. We need to support the ideas we believe in, otherwise there is no guarantee they will remain in this world. Maybe you have something of value to add to this discussion.
Bring it! Even if it means just speaking the truth as you see it. There is no telling how far that simple act can go.

I’ve spent the last thirty years as a working class renter in one of the most expensive cities in Canada. Traditionally, I much preferred being in the forest than being online. My social media presence has been virtually nothing until now. My budget for this project is non existent because my disposable income has been eaten away by inflation. 

So why am I going through all this trouble?

I feel compelled to stand up and do what I can in my little corner of the world. As a lover of history, and of Canada, I’m concerned we are heading down a terrible road. As much as I’ve tried to pay attention to the new ideas swirling around us, I realize I do not understand my own country as well as I should. I mean to fix that, and I’m hoping you’ll join me on this journey. Perhaps together, we can make sense of where Canada is at and where it is going. There is an obligation rising from deep within my spirit telling me this is the right path for me. Maybe I’ll end up talking into the void. Maybe I’ll be demonized or demonetized, but I promise to do my best to do provide a space for genuine understanding to grow. We need all hands on deck right now. 

Be brave.

Be truthful.

Stand up for what’s right, even if you’re the only one standing.

And please, come on this journey with me. Go right now and subscribe to Bad Canadians.