Omnibus: The Tuesday feature

Universal untruths

Walter Humes

In everyday conversation we employ lots of trite statements which are generally offered as universal truths but which, on closer inspection, turn out to be rather dodgy generalisations. Take 'travel broadens the mind' for example.
     The young people who go to the Costa del Sol for sex and lager holidays are not noted for seizing the opportunity to learn about the local culture or acquire a foreign language. Rather, they are out to notch up as many deeply meaningless experiences as possible, though their capacity to remember precisely how many may be dulled by serial hangovers. Again, it is not unusual to overhear loud, brash American tourists passing ill-informed comment on visitor attractions in Europe, generally comparing them unfavourably with something 'bigger and better' back home.
     A couple of my acquaintance have spent most of their working lives abroad, mainly in the Middle East. They have also travelled extensively in other parts of the world. Their main interests appear to be collecting expensive jewellery (in the case of the woman) and trying to improve at golf (in the case of the man). Most of their social life when abroad centres round the expatriate community and they turn a blind eye to serious political and religious issues affecting the native population. However, that does not prevent them from commenting adversely on social trends in Britain when they return home from time to time.
     I am also struck by the attitudes displayed by former diplomats and military personnel when they are interviewed about international affairs. They will have had the opportunity to travel extensively and meet people of widely differing backgrounds. But in their pronouncements, these old buffers (invariably male) speak as if the sun had never set on the British Empire. They talk about British interests and influence as if we had a God-given right to impose our standards and values on other nations. Not much evidence of travel broadening the mind there.

These examples cast doubt on another conversational commonplace: 'You learn something new every day'. Learning requires an open mind. Sadly, some people seem to acquire a closed mind at quite an early age while others develop one as the years advance. I have a relative – I needn't fear he will see this as his only reading material is the Daily Mail – who can boast a full set of prejudices which no evidence or argument will budge. Some years ago he had to undergo a heart by-pass operation. Showing great consideration, I waited until he had recovered before congratulating him on managing to survive the operation without having to adjust any of his strongly-held opinions. Alertness to irony is not his strong suit.
     Some people may have an open mind in certain areas but not in others. A former colleague of mine was a woman of considerable intelligence whose work in her professional field I greatly admired. However, in relation to her core beliefs in politics and religion her position was resolute to the point of being unmoveable. Her allegiances were, in this sense, tribal and beyond reason. Religious zealots and political ideologues are classic examples of people who are not open to new learning, though they may show great verbal skill when responding to sceptics.
     Of course you can't compel people to broaden their minds if they are determined not to, though it might be possible to offer incentives. Given a choice between a free Saga holiday and an Open University course, I would find the latter hugely attractive, whatever the subject. And I suspect it's only a matter of time before attending a compulsory module on 'Preparation for Death' will be a condition of receiving one's pension. A pass rate of 100% will be guaranteed, thereby meeting at least one government target.