Beyond Political Tribalism: Why You're Not Actually Liberal or Conservative & What Jonathan Haidt Got Wrong | Hyrum Lewis

Hyrum Lewis is a professor, author, and political theorist who teaches history at Brigham Young University–Idaho, where he leads the American Foundations Team. His research focuses on the history of ideology and the intersection of political and intellectual culture, with extensive writing on the evolution of American conservatism, historical pedagogy, and cultural conflict in the American West. He is the author of several books including his most recent, "The Myth of Left and Right," co-authored with his brother Verlan Lewis, which argues that the traditional left-right political spectrum is a misleading and oversimplified framework for understanding contemporary American politics.In this conversation, we explore the intuition that the political spectrum is broken, the Essentialist Theory of Ideology vs the Social Theory of Ideology, and why tribalism precedes philosophy rather than the other way around.We get into the caricatures we hold of the left and the right, how the meaning of left and right is always changing, and the uncomfortable truth that we often choose our politicians before our policies. Hyrum offers a better way to use terms like left and right or liberal and conservative, and how to vote on issues without anchoring to a tribal identity.We also explore how to move beyond left and right within a two-party system, what Jonathan Haidt and Moral Foundations Theory got wrong, and whether the links between psychological traits and political positions actually hold up.We close with pathways toward more generative political conversations, why we need to increase our tolerance for disagreement, developing a Scout Mindset, the relationship between religion and politics, and the destructive ideology of progressivism.🔗 LINKS & RESOURCES 🔗The Myth of Left and Right by Hyrum Lewis and Verlan LewisThe Righteous Mind by Jonathan HaidtKeith StanovichJohn Stuart MillThe Scout Mindset by Julia GalefThe Rational Optimist by Matt Ridley🕰️ TIMESTAMPS 🕰️0:00 - Introduction3:18 - The intuition that the political spectrum is broken5:26 - The Essentialist Theory of Ideology vs the Social Theory of Ideology8:38 - Why tribalism precedes philosophy12:01 - Caricatures of the left and the right14:25 - How what left and right means is always changing17:44 - We choose our politicians before our policies21:31 - How to better use terms like left and right or liberal and conservative27:03 - Voting on one issue without anchoring32:05 - How do we move beyond left and right with a two-party system?39:25 - What Jonathan Haidt and Moral Foundations Theory got wrong44:45 - Questioning the links between psychological traits and political positions49:17 - Pathways towards more generative political conversations53:51 - Why we need to increase our tolerance for disagreement59:16 - Developing a Scout Mindset1:02:08 - What is the relationship between religion and politics1:06:55 - The destructive ideology of progressivism*Subscribe to my YouTube channel to watch the video versions of the Elevating Consciousness Podcast *Subscribe to the Insighter Substack to get in-depth articles on the theory and practice of human transformation through a post-conventional