KEEPING AN OPEN MIND.........( Article by Professor Hu Chi Ku Chi )

Keeping an open mind on issues , especially controversial ones requires a strength of character most of us do not possess. Our values , attitudes and opinions all too often are shaped and influenced by others. One innate weakness which many of us possess is our subconscious surrender to manipulative and oh-so-subtle and forms of conditioning and indoctrination. Peer group pressure and propaganda can even overwhelm those who resolutely set out to remain independent thinkers.
For instance , whenever committees insist on holding their meetings behind closed doors , the likelihood of open minds being present is zero. Secrecy promotes conspiracy and abuse of power. Decisions can be made without any outside scrutiny or challenge . The temptation to approach problems and issues with closed minds, which are so often fuelled by personal motives and interests, becomes irresistible. Reasons behind those decisions inevitably stay inside the room . Voting is recorded with anonymity , and dissent within the committee ranks can be easily dealt with and supressed.
Keeping an open mind of course requires individuals to free themselves from the shackles of prejudice , bias and raw emotion. But the failings and shortcomings of human condition makes that task almost impossible. Nevertheless , the next best thing is to admit to having fixed opinions and jaundiced views on an issue, so as others can then judge whether or not you are capable of entering into an open and rational debate on the subject. An open mind involves a willingness to hear the views of others , to weigh up all the evidence ( for and against )  ,  and to reach a fair and just decision , based on an objective overview of the relevant facts and arguments raised in a meaningful discussion. 
When a committee fails to acknowledge and accommodate alternative points of views , blinded by their own prejudgements , one can only assume that closed minds are in the ascendency. Coming to any meeting with a fixed agenda , idea or opinion is a very destructive thing. For if people have already convinced themselves that they are right , then the likelihood is that this powerful lobby will easily win over those , who come to the meeting with " empty  minds ", as opposed to " open " ones .  Filling empty minds is all too easy.
The biggest tragedy, according to E. D. White, is that " the world is full of people who have never , since childhood , met an open door way with an open mind ". Indeed, Frank Zappa  made a similar observation when he said , " the mind is like a parachute : it doesn't work if it does not open ". Indeed , the odds of finding an open mind in closed room are about the same as a parachute opening when jumping off a table. People who operate in secret , soon develop the habit of dismissing alternative views with sneering contempt, simply because they do not fit well with their preconceived notions.
Openness and transparency in meetings certainly help to steer people to approach a task with open minds, or at least with the appearance of doing so. Observers will be looking to see that full and frank discussions take place, and that decisions reached will not be based on erroneous assumptions , misguided dogma and personal prejudices.