LJ Idol Season 9, Week 13: Open Topic
Middle Ground
I have friends on Facebook who span the political spectrum. Some are very conservative, bashing Obama at every turn and posting patriotic pictures and Bible verses every chance they get. Others are highly liberal, blasting the Republican Congress for being ineffective and sharing economic studies and pictures from Pride parades all over their walls. The number of times I've seen quotes from Ayn Rand and Rand Paul juxtaposed is nothing short of frightening.
Sometimes, when I feel like watching blood sport, I'll read the comments on some of these posts where the two sides clash. It is simultaneously fascinating and heartbreaking to watch two people--both good friends of mine--either talk at or talk past each other for sixty comments. "You clearly don't understand economics!" "Well, YOU clearly don't understand people!"
Occasionally, I feel like interjecting something really controversial into the conversation. Indeed, I hold to a belief that probably would upset everyone so greatly, I would instantly be un-friended by two-thirds of my Facebook friends if I ever expressed it.
What is this inflammatory speech, this cauldron of hatred that everyone would find distasteful? I can summarize it in six words:
"The truth lies somewhere in between."
Before you boil the tar and pull the feathers out of the pillows, hear me out.
We, as a society, appear to have lost the ability to recognize that some things other people say are true, even if we don't agree with them on other matters. Either you're on my side, or you're the enemy. Everyone is divided into two opposing camps, with no fraternizing allowed, just unfriendly fire.
That's no way to run a community. That's no way to live.
Because if all you let yourself hear are support and hostility, you become further entrenched in your positions. If every voice is either with you or against you, there's nothing to learn; you become focused more on not backing down from your beliefs than on discovering the truth.
The issues facing our world today are complex, and simple ideologies won't solve them. We have to listen to each other, learn from each other, and be willing to accept when our deeply-held positions may have flaws.
Or, just post cat videos. Everyone loves those, right?
I have friends on Facebook who span the political spectrum. Some are very conservative, bashing Obama at every turn and posting patriotic pictures and Bible verses every chance they get. Others are highly liberal, blasting the Republican Congress for being ineffective and sharing economic studies and pictures from Pride parades all over their walls. The number of times I've seen quotes from Ayn Rand and Rand Paul juxtaposed is nothing short of frightening.
Sometimes, when I feel like watching blood sport, I'll read the comments on some of these posts where the two sides clash. It is simultaneously fascinating and heartbreaking to watch two people--both good friends of mine--either talk at or talk past each other for sixty comments. "You clearly don't understand economics!" "Well, YOU clearly don't understand people!"
Occasionally, I feel like interjecting something really controversial into the conversation. Indeed, I hold to a belief that probably would upset everyone so greatly, I would instantly be un-friended by two-thirds of my Facebook friends if I ever expressed it.
What is this inflammatory speech, this cauldron of hatred that everyone would find distasteful? I can summarize it in six words:
"The truth lies somewhere in between."
Before you boil the tar and pull the feathers out of the pillows, hear me out.
We, as a society, appear to have lost the ability to recognize that some things other people say are true, even if we don't agree with them on other matters. Either you're on my side, or you're the enemy. Everyone is divided into two opposing camps, with no fraternizing allowed, just unfriendly fire.
That's no way to run a community. That's no way to live.
Because if all you let yourself hear are support and hostility, you become further entrenched in your positions. If every voice is either with you or against you, there's nothing to learn; you become focused more on not backing down from your beliefs than on discovering the truth.
The issues facing our world today are complex, and simple ideologies won't solve them. We have to listen to each other, learn from each other, and be willing to accept when our deeply-held positions may have flaws.
Or, just post cat videos. Everyone loves those, right?