In the months leading up to George Bush’s 2003 invasion, “everybody” thought that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. In the months before the housing bubble burst, “everybody” insisted that the market was healthy – nothing to worry about. At one time, everybody knew that asbestos was a great material for use in home building, and that BPA was a harmless additive in plastics that hold our food and water.
What does everybody say is true, today? Could everybody be disastrously wrong, again?
It’s not everybody, of course. Everybody doesn’t believe the same thing, ever. There are always creative, alternative perspectives if we’re willing to hear them. Usually, though, we tend to assume that the most prominent voices speak for everyone.
But what if we don’t know that much, after all? What if we’re just playing a massive game of follow-the-leader? What if those leaders are taking us right off a cliff? Again.
Maybe it’s time we stopped hearing so much from everybody. Maybe it’s time we heard from you.