Which Shirt Do You Wear? Tribal Blue or National Blue?

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Confessions to Make

        Prejudice is frowned upon, but have you ever guessed someone's tribe solely based on their view of the world and the basis of their thoughts towards a subject? I have done it so many times, betting against myself, and I have not lost majority of the time! Are people's opinions shaped by their surroundings? What about the people who grew up outside of their tribe or group? Is there an exception to the rule? 

Different School of Thought

        The term is used for any group of people who have common thinking towards a specific subject or issue. For example, there is a group of people who think the earth is flat, the Flat-Earthers. These groups share an opinion or an outlook discipline, belief, economics, cultural movement and so on. In academic sense, it is used to refer to a group of thinkers who share a more common approach to a field of study. Is it hereditary to come from the same school of thought as your fellow tribal men and women?

Common Interests

        Common interest is a shared interest between two or more people. It can be for the love of a sports team, or to listen to the same genre of music. Typically, this is how friends are made and how relationships develop, because when people share a common interest they can talk to each other for hours an end. Can you suddenly choose to love a sports team to relate to someone? It is doable, but you will be labeled as an imposter. 

Clan Politics and Affiliations

        Why do people, from the same tribe, who live in different part of the world, have the same opinion about certain political views? Do they teleport those ideas to each other through a back-end communication means? Or is it because of the way they were raised? 

        Personally, I do not have a problem with someone who is defending his or her tribe's special interest in a national dialogue setting. However, if that same person is making an argument about a common national interest, and I notice that the person is leaning towards favoring his or her tribe, in the expense of others, I am going to have a problem with that notion. In that case, I will invoke the right to know more about their perspective. I might do that by asking about their clan affiliation for the sake of the argument. What is good for you is not always good for others. Let that sink in for a second!

What is Good for me is also Great for the Country 

        We need to check the size of the shoes one is wearing to match with the footprint they will make. There's only one national interest and the rest is regional or tribal interests. The conundrum here is, how much of a smooth talker do you have to be, to convince everyone in the room that your specific interest aligns, perfectly, with the country's best interest? 

By: Abdirahman Dahir (Samawade)
Entrepreneur | Activist | SpacesHost 
@AbdiSamawad

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