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Recently, I've been trying to become a better storyteller. Facts and opinions can be ignored or neatly filed away, but stories stick with us and influence us in powerful ways.
For example, compare the following two statements:
1) "The rich should pay higher taxes to help the less fortunate."
vs.
2) "I grew up lower middle-class family living paycheck to paycheck. My parents were proud people who worked hard every day and did the best they could for us, but their's was not the life I envisioned for myself.
Thankfully, my small town had an excellent public school system, and I was able to do well enough to get into college. I probably wouldn't have been able to afford college with tuition the way it is today, but I went to a good state school that was heavily subsidized by taxpayers. I studied business, did very well, and went on to graduate school to earn my MBA.
Today, as I'm doing rather well for myself and living the American dream of class mobility, I think back about all the help I needed along the way. A lot of that help came from taxpayers. So it doesn't make sense to me that some people don't feel a responsibility to pay their fair share of taxes. I think we all need to give back after everything we've gained from each other."
I think that would be a good way to talk to a "Me, Me, Me" Conservative. I'm going to try this approach more often...fewer facts and more narrative. How could this be refuted?
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