Affirm your beliefs (or change them) - by examining another point of view

Lately I'm finding myself questioning my belief systems and why I believe the things I do. There are some beliefs I have that I consider non-negotiable after evolving through other belief systems to get to where I am today. At one point I considered myself a socialist, mostly as a subject of government indoctrination in school. Soon after, I found myself believing in right wing theories, which isn't much of a change really as one realizes it's two wings of the same bird. Naturally, the next belief was that I was a libertarian.

When I saw the light that believing in any of these ideologies means that you've been brainwashed, submit to authority, and pass ownership of yourself on to a government entity, I became an anarchist.

The only way I've come to believe what I think is the most pure, peaceful, and loving way for humans to live is by examining other points of view to get here. I now consider this a non-negotiable, foundational belief of mine. I'm sure I thought that being a socialist was a foundational belief at the time, however I had no life experience to back up my ideology.

Another deep rooted belief I've had is that I have a sound understanding of what money is. Austrian economics, the Chicago school of economics, understanding the difference between sound money (gold and silver) and fiat currency were ideas that were drilled into me from a young age. It's never something I've questioned, generally understanding that most central economic planning has had a great track record of causing death and impoverishment for centuries through facilitating war, and theft through inflation and counterfeiting money.

To examine another point of view, tonight I watched a few documentaries on Keynesian economics for the first time. What I got from it was an affirmation that I still believe in the power of the free market, and that centralized banking and planning is inherently dangerous and destructive.

If you find yourself questioning your beliefs, or if you find yourself constantly looking for material to read or things to experience that line up with your current belief system, I encourage you to examine another point of view.

If you only listen to heavy metal music - go to a symphony.
If you enjoy eating meat - try being vegetarian or vegan for a week.
If you believe climate change is caused by humans - consider it could be a natural cycle.
If you believe taxation is the price we pay to live in a civilized society - consider that taxation could be theft (it is).

And vice-versa.

This is something I'm going to do more often, to constantly be aware of why I believe the things I do. I don't want my beliefs to solely be a product of my environment, but rather a product of my thinking as an individual.