Fascists perceive new knowledge that runs contrary to their worldview as a threat, which is why they show disdain for intellectuals, scientists and academics alike. Anti-science movements today are often supported by the idea that they threaten to usurp long-standing traditions.
By appealing to tradition and common sense, conservative politicians and media figures foster distrust in science and manipulate their followers into believing unsupported ideas.
The appeal to common sense is the assertion that something is true because society has always known it to be true.
For example, the White House article entitled, “President Trump is Restoring Common Sense to Government,” lists several of Trump’s executive actions in his first months of office. Such actions include making English the official language of the United States, ending DEI initiatives throughout the country, and ordering “an end to anti-Christian bias in the Federal Government.”
Many of these so-called common-sense decisions are not actually common sense. DEI, for example, is not “discrimination” as the same article claims.”
The Trump administration does not even explain why DEI constitutes discrimination in several of their posts on the White House official website. They want the reader to assume that this “fact” is self-evidently true. Similarly, many of Trump’s decisions in office are framed as the right course of action without any explanation as to why.
You may hear the justification that DEI is discriminatory because it forces companies to hire unqualified minorities over white people if given the choice.
In reality, DEI is an effort to extend the hiring pool and allow more people to be considered for a position. An article from Reuters explains what DEI is and what it aims to do:
“DEI practices include training on combating discrimination, addressing pay inequality along gender or racial lines and broadening recruitment access for underrepresented ethnic groups.”
So, nothing about DEI entails putting unqualified black people into jobs all willy-nilly. This, too, is something that the Trump administration wants you to accept as self-evident. They are not counting on you to look it up.
Despite the unsubstantiated nature of Trump’s “common sense” claims, this appeal unfortunately serves as an effective rhetorical strategy. Take the so-called trans debate as an example. Many conservatives will use phrases such as “There are only men and women, and that is the biological truth!” and “You believe that men can turn into women!” as conversation stoppers to prevent any further discussion about the topic.
The simplicity of these ideas is what makes them so attractive. Regarding sex and gender, it is easier to say that sex and gender are the same, that there are only men and women and that all deviations from the norm should be disregarded.
Both sex and gender are complex phenomena determined by several intricate biological mechanisms and vary in cultures throughout the world. Deviations from the norm are too common to ignore or disregard as weird. There is enough distinction between secondary sex characteristics and one’s perception of their body that sex and gender are recognized as different concepts entirely. Whereas reality can only be simplified so much, there is no limit to how straightforward and comprehensible a lie can be.
Conversation stoppers give people an excuse not to have to critically think about the subject at hand. In effect, appealing to common sense results in a close-mindedness that blocks all consideration of new ideas.
This close-mindedness manifests itself in many of the Trump administration’s policy decisions, including taking the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement, mandating the government recognize two genders and prohibiting federal funding for COVID-19 mandates in school. All of these executive orders are built upon scientifically unsupported notions.
Science grows and changes over time. Sticking to traditional ideas because of people’s personal beliefs about how they think the world should work is counterproductive and harmful to the progression of society. Because of the Trump Administration’s anti-science agenda, this stubborn close-mindedness may be America’s undoing.
