Don't Talk About Politics

How to Change 21st-Century Minds

De: Sarah Stein Lubrano

Narrado por: Sarah Stein Lubrano

Bloomsbury presents Don't Talk About Politics: How to Change 21st-Century Minds, written and read by Sarah Stein Lubrano

Democracy is dying because we are clinging to a dangerous and outdated myth: talking about politics can change people’s minds. It doesn’t.

This provocative debut from a bold voice combines a fascinating range of research to show us the psychological and sociological factors that really shape our politics.

Drawing from ancient philosophy to modern neuroscience and social science, Dr Sarah Stein Lubrano reveals the surprising truth about how people think and behave politically. From friendship to community organizing and social infrastructure, she explores the actions that actually do change minds.

In a world where politics keeps getting more irrational, dishonest, violent and chaotic, it’s getting much harder to reach people with words alone. So people who really care about democracy must ask: how can we stop arguing and do the deep work to build stronger foundations for political life, and a better world for us all?

©2025 Sarah Stein Lubrano (P)2025 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Seriously flap your butterfly wings

The points made in this book by Sarah Stein Lubrano may for some people seem counterintuitive—they also are spot on. Stein Lubrano illustrates that logical arguments made from any point of view are essentially dead on arrival in the ears of others (even for those who agree with the speaker)—at best they're seen as mere virtue signalling, whether from a patriotic, economic, or social justice perspective. The reason, the author explains, is that what people consider to be straight up common sense (even though it may be exactly that) is ultimately based on visceral feelings much more than reasoned logic—that's true for all of us, whether or not we admit it. Throughout the book Stein Lubrano addresses ways in which we can change minds that do not involve fruitless argumentative appeals.

The solution ultimately lies in having common experiences. A salient example that Stein Lubrano offers is that of going on a protest—the author notes however that these experiences affect the protester much more than the entity addressed in the protest (the effect of protest is more from a show of force in numbers, rather than a convincing argument regardless of how well founded). To meet the challenge of persuasion Stein Lubrano asserts that a "social infrastructure" is crucial to fostering meaningful social interaction and combating social atrophy. Our social infrastructure has been atrophying at a rapid pace with the advancement of finanicalized capitalism and diminished public spaces where people have regular inadvertent interactions with one another. Stein Lubrano calls these "third spaces"—places that are neither the workplace, which is too hierarchical, nor the home, which is too private. Examples would be pubs or bars, music venues, parks, libraries, or the playground in front of a school.

I would have welcomed more practical suggestions from the author to further reverse social atrophy. As long as the current regime of neoliberal economics, nationalist religion, and authoritarian societal culture is dominant, chances are slim that the essential third spaces will become available. What we can do is further utilize the third spaces we currently have such as they are. With so many people living on their mobile devices to the exclusion of direct personal interaction, perhaps those devices could be leveraged to facilitate more in-person meetups of people with shared interests in, for example, cycling or dogs or cats (fill in your own interests here). These seemingly non-political facets of life are the glue that can bond people for practical political change for the better. We'll all do well to not squander the influence we have, no matter how small we think it is—it's time to seriously flap your butterfly wings.