It's important to understand the difference between fact and narrative, especially for those of us who have grown up in the western sphere of "monotone presented as neutrality".

Here is a fairly simple example: We have two people, we'll call them Bob and Tom. The facts are that Bob punched Tom and that Tom punched Bob.

Notice that with these facts out of context, we already have a narrative forming. The order in which I wrote the facts suggests one punch happened after the other. It further suggests, due to the nature of how I'm saying it, that I am capable of being a neutral outside party who is evaluating the conflict between Bob and Tom without any personal bias toward outcome.

Now let's add more: Suppose a further fact is that Bob punched Tom because Tom first punched Bob. Now we are starting to get into order of events and motivation, and it's suggesting a narrative of self defense.

But what if that's not all there is to it? Suppose we add another layer. Though it is true that in this specific exchange of blows, Tom punched first, in previous unmentioned conflicts Bob has always been the initiator.

It can go on and on like this for a while and the more detail you add, the clearer a picture you get of what is going on. Outside of context, it is easier to presume being capable of neutral and accurate judgment, but the further you dig into the details, the more your judgment becomes an expression of what you believe in and what your interests are. The more you know about what happened and weigh in on it in detail, the harder it is to sound like an unbiased party.

Being conscious of, and accepting this, is not a bad thing. We all have biases. This does not mean it's good to lie and deceive carelessly and for selfish ends, but it does mean that no one is escaping motive. It means that when we weigh in on something, we are expressing someone's motive toward an outcome, whether it is our own or someone else's that we may not even realize we are carrying.

So when your boss sucks, make the working class motive conscious and figure out how to wield it, in context, toward a better world for yourself and the rest of the working class. When your people are imperialized, make the liberation motive conscious and figure out how to wield it toward ending imperialism. And so on.