I KNOW THIS TO BE TRUE, WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BEING

Imagine this: You are watching CNN. The host has two guests arguing about illegal immigration. The guests are touted as experts in their field and their credentials would prove that: one is a Harvard graduate; the other from Princeton. Both have the same degree. Yet somehow these two equals in their fields are able to have completely opposite views and argue them passionately. They both have the same data on the number of illegals in the country.

How is it then that when presented with the same data that two people can disagree while being so similar? It is simple. Normative vs. positive statements.

In economics (the most logical of all pursuits) breaks down all statements and ideas put forth into one of two categories: normative or positive. Understanding these will help to better understand what people are really arguing about.

A normative statement is one that is based on emotion and has no relation to numbers, facts, statistics, or data. It is a person’s statement on anything really that is based on their own thoughts and feelings. A normative statement cannot be quantified or studied. It cannot be correct in and of itself. It is generally not an acceptable way to support ones ideas either. An example of a normative statement: “There are too many illegals in this country”. Or “We should do more to help poor people”. Or this fun gem “The rent is too damn high!!” These statements are all based on a person’s individual beliefs. They cannot be proven nor disproven with numbers. How many is ‘too many’ illegals? How much is ‘do more’? How high is too high?

A positive statement is one that is solely based on numbers or quantifiable data. It is a statement that is correct regardless of opinion. Positive statements exists separate form any creed, color, gender, ethnicity, or political affiliation. Positive statements are what actually prove arguments and are useful in public and private discourse. Some examples are “1.2 million babies are aborted each year in the United States”, “The position of running back in the NFL is comprised of 99% black men”, or “The rent is 68% higher than the national average”. These statements ignore what is right and wrong. These statements actually inform others and are what we need more of.

So, how can our pretend Harvard and Princeton graduates have the same data and disagree so vehemently? Normative beliefs. One feels that illegals are hurting the country; the other feels we should do more to help them. Both can say that there are 12 million illegals in the U.S.

Why does any of this matter? Because the media uses these to make us react in the way that best sells air time or issues. We are told the normative statement and then given the positive statement that supports that feeling. This is a HUGE problem because numbers never lie but people do. And people can dig deep enough and long enough to find the positive statement they need to support their normative one.

It is important for us to be able to distinguish between a normative and a positive statement. Politicians use the normative to get your vote. They say sweet things to convince you that they can help. We like hearing sweet things. But the sweet things can’t be added, can’t be subtracted, or analyzed.

It is my humble hope that we we gather together to discuss and debate on what is going on and what needs to happen, we do so positively. Lets leave our heartfelt exclamations out of it. It is almost impossible for a human to remove their emotions from their words and actions, but for us to come together to really make things better, we need to bring our facts to the table and discuss the merits of those.

I know you really care about what you care about otherwise you wouldn't care.