“Close Minded? Isn't that sort of narrow and negative?”

At first glance, that's certainly a reasonable reaction. (But it got your attention, didn't it?) However, the name of the show is not just a marketing tactic, but rooted in a deep truth.

G.K. Chesterton once wrote the following:

“Merely having an open mind is nothing. The object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something solid.”

A hallmark of maturity is the ability to hold up an idea you don't necessarily agree with and scrutinize it, to evaluate it dispassionately without having to own it for yourself.

Another sign of maturity is one's willingness to engage a wide variety of ideas and topics without being frightened away just because someone shouts “problematic!”–whether it be a Twitter mob, a self-hating Social Justice Warrior on Facebook, or even your own tribe.

So around here we aren't afraid to discuss lots of ideas, regardless of our actual positions:

Political anarchism? Check.
Human sexuality? Check.
Trump as an existential dictatorial threat to Western Civilization? Check.
Darwinism and Intelligent Design? Check.
The intersection of technology and philosophy? Check.

But there's more! We also aren't interested in claims that certain genres of literature are “uncool.” Who cares?

We are readers. Avid readers of wide-ranging works. Readers who cultivate what Tolkien called “the leaf mold” of the mind, the topsoil of our moral imagination and creativity.

We aren't embarrassed to enjoy “kid lit” and YA fiction, or afraid to read sociological & political works that challenge our assumptions. We enjoy classic novels, hard-boiled crime thrillers, controversial works of theology & culture, economics, productivity & personal development. We are not bound by social or political convention.

We “read for pleasure in an age of distraction” (Alan Jacobs). We consume and engage books for stimulation, conviction & enrichment. We want to stretch our minds, grow in empathy, & experience the joys & challenges of reading good books.

We read with an open mind in order to close it on something.

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“But wait! Shouldn't it be CloseD Minded (with a d)?”

Welcome, fellow grammar nerd, to my tortured existence. I do happen to believe that “Closed Minded” is preferable to “Close Minded”–and thus, I die a little bit inside each time I say or write it. HOWEVER, I went with “Close Minded” for two reasons. First, technically both are considered acceptable–see here and here. Second, when I compared the Google search results for both spellings, “Close” had exponentially more hits, so I followed the basic rules of internet marketing and went with what people are actually searching for.

Case close, er, closed.

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