I would be the first to admit that I’m a highly partisan Liberal Democrat. I have some very strong opinions, and I’m not afraid to throw them out there. This, after all, is the raison d’etre for TPRS. It would be nice if my readers were unanimous in agreement with my opinions and pronouncements, but I realize that’s probably not going to happen- and that’s a good thing. If everyone thought like I do, this would be one seriously f——d up place.
I have never felt that I have all the answers, and that my opinions are morally and intellectually superior to other, lesser mortals. There are enough Right-wing demagogues out there doing that as it is. I enjoy a healthy, mature debate, because every now and then I learn something from people who don’t think like I do.
Something that I’m finding increasingly disturbing, though, is that it seems as those on the Right are less and less willing to engage in a debate on the issues facing this country today. When voices like Fraulein Konzentrationlager and Fraulein Gasraum and other “Kill-‘em-all-let-God-sort-‘em-out” Conservatives begin to dominate the debate from the Right, there really is very little hope for anything resembling a meeting of the minds.
The beauty of this country has always been it’s diversity, that gentle tug-of-war between different cultures and ideologies. Largely because we are not a monochromatic society composed of drones who all think the same way, America has come to assume it’s position as a leader of the free world. Now, though, I’m beginning to wonder if our greatest strength isn’t being turned into a cancer eating at the American body politic from within.
No one person, ideology, or political/religious belief system has all of the answers necessary to move this nation forward. I’ve always believed that the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle- what the late Tip O’Neill was referring to when he defined politics as the “art of the possible”. Now I’m beginning increasingly concerned that so many on the Right are willing to define the relative worth of Americans based on their political, ideological, and religious beliefs. It’s a narrow, arrogant, and seriously flawed approach, one that threatens the very fabric of this nation.
Memo to those judgemental acolytles of Fraulein Gasraum and Fraulein Konzentrationlager: not believing as you do does not make one a lesser human being. It just means we think differently. If yo’re willing to make your living off divisiveness, insults, and the promotion of aggressive ignorance and hatred, that’s on you. I believe that someday you’ll have to answer for your actions. In the meantime, I can only hope that good and decent people will turn away and embrace the reality that thinking differently is not a crime.
Can’t we all just get along?
