Like you, I have friends who lean left and friends who lean right. Sometimes we all get along just fine, sometimes we annoy one another, and sometimes we de-friend each other on Facebook. I've been thinking about what makes the difference, and I decided to try to write something that we all might confirm - unless, of course, we would really rather rant than communicate. Wouldn't it be lovely if we could combine conviction with passionate intensity - and still talk peaceably with one another!
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5 comments:
brilliant
This would make a lot more sense if Republicans and Democrats shared to same goals.
Dan, I believe we do share the same goals, the ones I quoted from the Preamble to the Constitution: to "establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity." We often have different means to achieve those goals, and for some of us, those means have turned into ends. We need to back up, refocus on our goals, and then argue - respectfully - about the best ways to achieve them.
The Democratic Party doesn't generally claim to have guiding principles. It is a coalition of special interests.
Tom, your comment is a helpful negative example. I assure you, most Democrats believe exactly the same about the Republican party. And both are partly wrong and partly right, of course. Both parties have principles, and many of these principles are worth fighting for. But sadly, both parties are, as you say, coalitions of special interests. Which is why civil discourse, as opposed to mutual demonization, is so urgent.
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