The Comfort of “Both Sides”

By Michael Smith — Reflective MVS

The Comfort of “Both Sides”

There’s a phrase people reach for when they don’t want to think too hard.

Both sides.

It sounds reasonable. Measured. Almost virtuous. Like you’ve risen above the fray and can now observe humanity from a tasteful distance, arms folded, chin slightly lifted.

Most of the time, it’s not wisdom.
It’s escape.

“Both sides” is what people say when they want the appearance of depth without the burden of discernment. It’s the intellectual version of shrugging while history is happening.

And it’s everywhere right now.

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False Balance Isn’t Neutral. It’s Lazy.

Critical thinking requires friction. You have to read past the headline. Sit with context. Ask who benefits, who pays, and who’s being asked to stay patient while harm continues.

“Both sides” flattens all of that.

It treats power like opinion.
Oppression like disagreement.
Reality like a debate club exercise.

When one side is defending human dignity and the other is eroding it, pretending they carry equal moral weight isn’t fairness. It’s avoidance dressed up as sophistication.

Neutrality feels safe because it asks nothing of you. No risk. No accountability. No uncomfortable self-examination.

But neutrality has consequences. It always does.

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Being Uninformed Isn’t a Sin. Staying That Way Is.

Here’s the part we don’t talk about enough.

Not knowing something is fine. Nobody is informed on everything. The problem starts when people confuse confidence with comprehension.

Forming strong opinions without doing the work isn’t independence. It’s outsourcing your thinking to vibes, algorithms, or whoever sounds most certain in the room.

Critical thinking doesn’t mean you’re always right. It means you’re willing to be corrected. It means you understand the difference between curiosity and defensiveness.

It means you know when to say, “I need to learn more,” instead of pretending uncertainty is weakness.

Right now, we reward certainty more than understanding. That’s how misinformation thrives. Loud beats accurate. Simple beats true.

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This Is Bigger Than Politics

Yes, this shows up in elections and policy debates. But that’s just the loudest version of it.

The same habits show up in everyday conversations. In workplaces. In families. In social circles where harmony is valued more than honesty.

“Let’s not get into that.”
“Everyone’s entitled to their opinion.”
“There’s truth on both sides.”

Sometimes those phrases are about peace. Often, they’re about discomfort avoidance.

The inability—or refusal—to evaluate claims critically doesn’t stay contained. It bleeds outward. It shapes how we vote, who we protect, and what we’re willing to tolerate as normal.

This isn’t about being right. It’s about being responsible with the ideas we carry and repeat.

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The Price of Not Thinking

False balance costs us clarity.
It costs us moral language.
It costs us the ability to name harm without apologizing for it.

And eventually, it costs us trust.

Because people who are affected by injustice can tell the difference between nuance and indifference. Between thoughtful disagreement and intellectual laziness.

“Both sides” often sounds neutral to the speaker. It rarely feels neutral to the person bearing the consequences.

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A Reflective Moment

Not everything has two equal sides.
Some things have truth and denial.
Context and convenience.
Courage and comfort.

Critical thinking isn’t about arrogance. It’s about responsibility. About refusing to let ease replace ethics.

If that shoe feels snug, that’s not an attack.
That’s an invitation.

Reflective MVS
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