I’m Guy Finley.
I run a photography business (Guy Finley Studios) and operate a digital marketing agency (Gray Owl Group) that serves nonprofits. I’ve also spent nearly 25 years in local government—starting on the school board at 29, serving as board president, and currently serving as Police & Fire Commissioner and chairman of our Joint Review Board. Add in years of community theatre work, and I’ve spent decades navigating competing pressures from all sides.
Law-and-order advocates versus civil liberties defenders. Clients with opposing political views. Community members from across the political spectrum. School funding debates. Public safety controversies. Economic development conflicts.
That experience taught me something crucial: most people aren’t evil, but tribal thinking makes pragmatic solutions impossible.
Full disclosure: I’m a right-leaning libertarian. I have biases. But I also recognize that a lot of libertarian theory—like completely open immigration—sounds great in an Ayn Rand novel but doesn’t survive contact with reality. So I test my assumptions against evidence, even when (especially when) it challenges what I want to believe.
That’s what this site is about.
The Problem We’re Facing
We’re living through a crisis of algorithmic tribalism. Social media platforms discovered that outrage is addictive—it triggers the same dopamine pathways as gambling. The algorithm feeds you content that confirms your biases and enrages you about “the other side.” Echo chambers radicalize people in as little as 30 minutes. Meanwhile, political operatives and media outlets weaponize this dynamic, profiting from keeping you angry and afraid.
The result? We’ve stopped analyzing ideas and started demonizing people. Compromise becomes betrayal. Nuance becomes weakness. And pragmatic governance becomes impossible.
The ancient Stoic philosopher Epictetus saw this coming 2,000 years ago. He taught that “the first and greatest task of a philosopher is to test impressions and distinguish between them, and not admit any that has not been tested” (Discourses 1.20).
Test the impression. Then form your judgment. Skip that step, and you become a puppet of whoever crafted the message.
What This Site Does
Test Your Impressions exists to model that process in action.
I examine political narratives, policy arguments, viral memes, and cultural flashpoints against evidence, logic, and Stoic virtue. I don’t claim to have “the truth”—I provide the methodology for testing claims.
The framework is simple:
Test impressions before accepting them
Critique ideas, not people
Cite sources, always
Challenge both tribes when they distort facts
Seek pragmatic solutions over ideological purity
Assume readers’ capacity for reason, even when questioning their current positions
This isn’t “both-sides-ism.” It’s not claiming everyone is equally right or equally wrong. It’s refusing to let judgments be controlled by those who profit from outrage.
What Makes This Different
Not Ryan Holiday selling journals: This is applied Stoicism for real-world problems, not productivity porn or aspirational content marketing. Epictetus taught practical philosophy for navigating chaos—that’s what you’ll find here.
Not Fox/MSNBC picking a team: Some pieces will challenge claims from the right. Some from the left. All will prioritize evidence over tribal loyalty. If your reaction to an article is “which side is he on?”—you’re asking the wrong question.
Not paywalled Substack: Ideas should be accessible. Test Your Impressions will always be free. No courses, no memberships, no monetized tribalism.
Not hot takes for clicks: These are research-backed deep dives with inline citations. If I make a claim, I source it. If I get something wrong, I correct it publicly. The point isn’t to go viral—it’s to model good-faith analysis.
What You’ll Find Here
Policy analysis through a Stoic lens: Immigration, governance, law enforcement, civil liberties—examined for what works, not what scores tribal points
Cultural commentary: Sports tribalism, regional identity, media narratives—testing the claims we accept without questioning
Historical deep dives: What we “know” about Palestine, the LA Riots, and other events—examined against actual evidence
Fact-checking viral claims: That meme in your feed? Let’s test it against actual evidence
Philosophy applied to current events: What would Epictetus say about algorithmic radicalization? Let’s find out
Comment sections for actual debate: Vigorous disagreement is welcome. Personal attacks aren’t. Critique ideas, not people.
Success Here Looks Different
I’m not chasing ad revenue, building an email list to sell courses, or optimizing for engagement metrics. Success means:
Someone reconsidering a position after examining evidence
People from opposite tribes finding common ground in the comments
Pragmatic solutions gaining traction over purity tests
Readers developing their own bullshit detectors
If this project helps even a handful of people resist tribal manipulation and think more clearly about complex issues, it’s worth doing.
Want to Go Deeper?
Read the full manifesto: Why Test Your Impressions?
Or dive into an example of the methodology in action: Pragmatism vs Purism: Why Immigration Reform Keeps Failing
Let’s Talk
Comments are open on every post. Bring your best arguments, cite your sources, and be willing to change your mind when evidence warrants it. That’s all I ask.
You can also find me on X/Twitter, LinkedIn, or reach out at [email protected].
Test your impressions. Question the narratives. Refuse to be a foot soldier in someone else’s purity war.
