At one point in the discussion with Will Wilkinson, Jonathan Haidt says, “I think it’s great that we have New York and San Francisco so that people who really don’t fit into small-town America have a Mecca to go to to be incredibly free socially. But I think it’s also important that we have more traditional, well-ordered societies that, it turns out, actually make people happier. Religion makes people happier; conservative values make people happier; order, tradition, predictability generally make people happier.”
Consider whether you agree or disagree with some or all of Haidt’s assertions based on your own experience or on your observations of others. Your instructor may ask you to post your thoughts on a class discussion board or to discuss them with other students during class time. Use these questions to get started: