Why do so many hide behind objectivity so often? I agree there are times when being objective is necessary. I wonder if this is the next stage of lonliness because when you can't talk about you, you must have low confidence in self awareness and self esteem. Objectivity keeps us at a distance and permits us to not reveal who we are. I think however, that this is dangerous because we never have to put ourselves out there . Could this be because we are so concerned with what we do rather than who we are? Being a person defined by what one does would require mostly objectivity. This objectivity speaks ill of americanism because we are like 'borg' people.

Females are better at telling their own story than most men I think. I am afraid though that women are becomeing too much like men and then what are we going to do? One of the unconcious attractions for men towards women is their ability to remain personal and intuitive. I say this is dangerous!

Why not speak from an autobiographical view? I understand being young and/or immature is a fact of life, but when you learn to communicate life through your own story, that helps the maturing process.

When I talk with others, I rarely speak objectively.

So, what do you think?

Is objectivity not being based on facts? And facts are those things people have consensus over. If someone does not believe the facts, claiming objectivity is just am attempt to elevate ones-self above needing to explain your reasons to believe certain things.
Even when someone claims to be objective and is using facts that consensus is agreed on, the wording may well not be objective. Or that person could just omit facts.(by accident or purpose)

I think news organizations usually erroneously claim objectivity. Although this has had its use when they need to report on something as bystanders, and not be dragged into the events. (But it usually does not work.)

Or am i approaching this thread at a wholly different angle? Perhaps you are talking about the "The price payed" thread? Is that not talking about feelings associated with a picture? Perhaps that is a kind of lack of objectivity too.

Ding, Ding, Ding, you are the Grand Prize winner of nothing, but you are correct.

I agree with the original post, and would also like to add that I think our culture places too much emphasis on logical and concrete understanding of our thoughts and actions. Of course, when presenting your arguments in a formal discussion, or writing a scientific journal, or something else of the sort, it's very important to appeal to logic (and objectivity also is a good thing in such cases). But in our daily lives, we falsely assume that we understand the causes for our actions, and our chain of thoughts. Our brains don't generally reason sequentially, and most of our reasoning has been shown to be done subconsciously, so why do we force a logical, sequential explanation on every decision we make? Why do we have to create elaborate justifications for our opinions, when it has clearly been shown that most opinions are not formed and maintained based on those justifications?

I think that objectivity is an important skill to have - the ability to step back and try not let your preconceived prejudices cloud your judgment.

Finding out a clear path of reasoning from A to B and being able to convey that is quite useful in nonfamiliar settings. It adds power (whether justified or not) to our opinions in front of similarly knowlegable people. The real problem is that we don't take the time to know people: share in their experiences and understand them. How can I have a thoughtful discussion on an issue when I hardly know you? IMO, logic is simply a fallback used more and more often as we hurry more and more and never take the time to slow down.

There's another issue: privacy. I don't know anyone here at Socialdiscussion, so why should I be revealing myself to a bunch of strangers. I really don't need any stalkers right now

Is it impersonal? Yes. Is it taking a shortcut? Definitely. Is it a problem? I don't think so. It's an effect of how little time we devote to relationships...

It's impossible to be completely objective. There's a piece of ourselves that goes into everything we write or do or say. As the pieces build up, you get a clearer picture of who they are and what they stand for.

Claiming to be objective is essentially a "Hey, look, I'm trying. Give me attention" with a +1 attribute to fairness and accuracy, no matter whether the claim is blatantly false or not...

PS:If you could make sense of any of that, you deserve something special

thanks, qtwerp, you always seem to give a very clear picture. I do appreciate your love of language and words. I learn from them.

I enjoyed the something special. Who is that singing?

Yes, many people try to be "objective" by denying their personal interest in the issue. To me, objectivity is not subtracting personal interest, but rather adding a wider view that is willing to consider the other side. And objectivity is often a very good thing, but not always. Was Martin Luther King Jr. objective? I would say he wasn't even close. It wasn't a time for objectivity; it was a time for passion. As qtwerp and rjwood have both said, you can't completely divorces yourself from the issue. Trying to is futile and self-destructive. Rather, we should learn to consider points from the other side -- really consider them. That brings us objectivity without denying our inner selves.

Thanks Ilya, I enjoy reading your posts. I totally agree with your argument about logic and concrete understanding of thoughts and actions. What happened to wonderment? That is where true, unadulterated creativity is found, I think.

I hope you don't mind me using this as my sig. Thanks!

TYVM

It's Loituma, a Finnish group. The song's taken from Ievan Polkka [Live].
It still catches me for 5-10 minutes, and you can see my all-time record in my current sig