Authority, Familiarity, and Integrity

Water fluoridation... one of my favorite subjects to talk about. Partially, this is because the concept is a crystalized example of a much deeper, more sinister problem. That problem, in my mind, is a wide-spread combination of a.) an egoistic inability to complete period internal evaluations, b.) casual acceptance of authority, c.) quick dismissal of critics, and d.) a series of logical fallacies made by many that results in their continued acceptance of a status quo (e.g. prejudicial language, popularity of position, unrepresentative sample, fallacy of exclusion, begging the question).

The reason I bring this up is that I was, very surprisingly and dissapointingly, unable to have a decent conversation about this issue with a group of supposedly educated, intellectually able, aware Fulbright Fellows. According to my a through d rubric outlined above, this is how the conversation went:

1. Fluoride is a household word, in so many products, was around at home as far back as I can remember.. why would I second guess it now?
2. The American Dental Association, the Centers for Disease Control, my dentist, and my mother tell me fluoride is good.
3. Wasn't fluoride some communist conspiracy in that movie "Dr. Strangelove" - why would the government lie to me?
4. Logical fallacies:
   
1. Prejudicial language: fluoride helps children, how evil you are to oppose it
   
2. Popularity: fluoride is everywhere, "everyone" supports it
3. Unrepresentative sample: all medical professionals support it
4. Fallacy of Exclusion: "hundreds" of reports show that fluoride is good (usually non-specific)
5. Begging the question: our teeth are made of fluorine compounds, fluoridation of any type is therefore beneficial

The point of whether fluoride is good or not lost it's relevance during the heat of this conversation, and my issue began to be the poor quality of the debate. Pointing out peoples' logical fallacies is a dangerous situation, pointing out their egoism is recipe for a fight, and trying to shake off the "Dr. Strangelove"-you-lost-your-credibility effect is very hard. The end effect here is that issues such as fluoridation simply can't compete on the "debate table" erected over dinner. And then this girl said something along the lines of, "Do you even know who you're talking to? I'm a incoming medical school student." At that point, I kind of lost my head, because 1.) She was actually in the application phase, which is NO guarantee of admission, even for a Fulbrighter, 2.) Undergraduate preparation for medical school doesn't include barely any of the issue we were discussing, and 3.) Stating that one has authority, a title, credibility before one has them is a big no-no.

So I'm not making any friends fast, but I also don't exactly need friends around me who can't deal with a little non-mainstream opinion. My lesson: diplomacy skills and charisma are something I'll need to develop... soon.

Kibbutz Life

Kibbutz Ketura, District of Hevel Eilot, Israel --

One can hardly imagine the "transition" to a socialist community, such a kibbutz. Kibbutzim are essentially islands of communism within the otherwise fiercely capitalist (private propery-driven) country of Israel. Everyone is "paid" the same, shares the communal internet, receives more-or-less equal housing plots, eats together, does their laundry together, makes decisions together, organize social events for themselves, and even offers their children up for a more communal style of childcare. On the other hand, certain details escape the communist realm: people buy their own shampoo, soap, ice cream, beer, and pay out for their own vacations and traveling during the holidays. In addition, certain communal aspects of kibbutz life seem to "slip" each year: two years ago, temporary residents could freely enter the communal refrigerator and take what they needed; today, a representative kibbutznik has to enter on their behalf. And these days, the kibbutz unofficially encourages people to have around 4-5 children--this number being the average amount needed to maintain the member population around the kibbutz.

Living as a student in such a space has its benefits, as well as a few drawbacks. While I don't have to milk cows, pick fruit, or cut cucumbers, I get all of the friendly benefits of living in such a friendly environment. I'm also not obliged to contribute to the local concensus system and therefore I don't share the guilt, nor the pride, when things go wrong or right around the kibbutz. As a temporary resident, it's probably better that way: do I really understand their politics and long-term outlook anyway? In a way, however, the kibbutz needs me as much as, for the sake of my education, I need them. This is because the Arava Institute is, unofficially, their biggest money-maker. And me, as a student paying full tuition (well, we can thank the U.S. Dept of State for that $), I am making that true.

This issue of "cultural education" as a byproduct of my graduate school program here on the kibbutz has helped me clarify why, for some unknown reason, I struck U.S. schools off my list for graduate school. In the field of Development Studies, or the study of wacky-shit-going-on-in-the-Third-World, it simply doesn't make sense to be on some plush U.S. university campus studying--totally removed from any hint of what is going on "over there." Sure, Britain/Oxford wouldn't be a step up, but, unlike the U.S., it would at the very least be culturally different than what I've grown up with. It might not be like studying Development in the bush in Kazakhstan, but their ideals and their lifestyles will challenge my own and at least put the idea into perspective. I agree, however, that a more ideal position would be to study in the Third World. But while that has big bonuses on the "cultural education" component, it has major losses in other areas, such as quality of education, rigor of the work, prestige, and for getting the full financial benefit that my scholarship provides.

The Arava Institute fulfils that ideal for this year, because it easily fulfils the "cultural education" aspect of my studies, as well as having a top quality educational system.

Some questions: Chemists, Physicists, Mathematicians and other hard scientists could easily study anywhere there are quality programs... but other fields have a cultural component to be considered: political science, international anything (econ, law, politics, etc.), doctors (Western Medicine is only one of many options), linguists, historians, etc. Are student fully considering this aspect of their education? What might be preventing them from doing so (language, family, religion, finances, ...)?