A modest proposal

[banzai]

Since much of the public's political dial seems pegged at 11, my perspective as a single-issue (opposition to the legality of abortion) voter is regularly being challenged. For the most part, I don't talk with others about it at all, because the conversations are largely unhelpful to any party, and if we're going to add something to one another's

Comments

[chippa]

You = Appreciated.

[journeyto]

Do you have a specific set of people who are suggesting voting for one issue is overly naive or irresponsible? Or is that a general sense you're picking up?

[banzai]

I've experienced both (by "specific set," I mean people who have spoken directly with me-and I'm OK having that conversation; that's always been face-to-face and in an appropriate circle of intimacy-and by "general sense," I mean I've read or heard it critiqued), enough so to conclude it's a fairly common view.

No doubt my active disinterest in broad political discussion (outside of grounded relationships, which provide more context and are far more meaningful to me) keeps me a bit less personally exposed to that critique, which is fine with me since I don't think it's an especially constructive one. But it still occurs with a frequency that exceeds isolated incident.

[journeyto]

While voting out of one issue isn't right for me any longer (though I still wonder about my decision being the right one), I am wanting to defend doing so. I was told at one point that my vote due to being pro-life was irresponsible and while that ended up to be important feedback for me, it was below the belt and was extremely dismissive which is at it's basest form unproductive, but also just terribly unloving.

[banzai]

Yeah, not to be too controlling of my relationships, but most of the people who would take that kind of shot at me aren't ever going to get close enough do so.

Circles of intimacy are more important to me the older I get-maybe that's the pearls before swine thing? It seems unenlightened to say that, but there's still God-given wisdom and truth to be engaged there somehow, even if it might go against my sensibilities.

[jeney]

making note to revisit this post every 15 minutes.

Re: pro-life

[banzai]

I still think fetuses with automatic weapons could take a big bite out of the problem-we're much more interested in peace when the people we've declared war on fight back.

Heck, there might even be call for an unconditional, immediate withdrawal from the front, and we could deal with the consequences afterward, once we've stopped the killing. Such proposals seem popular in other circumstances…

[jadeejf]

:)