It's lonely when you don't live in the extremes
When seeing both sides of an issue puts you on an island
We've never been more polarized.
That may be a questionable statement because I wasn't alive in 1776 or 1860 or anytime before 1970 so I'm sure we have had eras in our nation's history when we were very polarized.
But it seems now that in order to be accepted you need to be completely in one camp or the other on every single issue and a one degree variance in the most extreme positions in those camps puts you outside the tent.
I have always considered myself a black and white person. However, even in those areas in which I believe strongly, I still see the possibility or plausibility of a different point of view even if I disagree with it. That allows me to have friends who carry those points of view. That allows me to read other points of view without entering into a blood boiling rage.
Having this mindset tends to put me on my own island. I find it very difficult to watch the news now because of how completely lopsided the coverage is on practically everything. Any politician that fails to serve up the reddest meat possible every single time he or she speaks gets immediately labeled a coward.
Almost every major issue we are facing is seen through only one lens by most of America.
In case you couldn’t tell already, I test out staunchly conservative.
or …
I have strong conservative beliefs both socially and economically. But acknowledging arguments on the other side is not allowed if you want to stay in the clique.
There isn’t a lot of room for the both/and people anymore.
But there is a lot of both/and to many issues facing us today:
Donald Trump
Most of the policies he pushed during his first term appear to be clearly superior to those of the other party.
His focus on energy independence had us in a good place. It helped the economy here in the United States and of course allowed us to be less dependent on foreign sources.
The push to try to secure the border during Trump’s term is far better than where we are now and it isn’t even close. Where we are now with the border is a disaster that gets worse by the day. Trump may have only built 50 miles of wall but anything is better than the stampede that exists now.
He pushed through what appear to be really good and very qualified Supreme Court justices.
It appears he at least tried to create new protections for faith-based campus organizations.
Unemployment fell and the economy expanded at a pretty good clip before COVID hit.
All of the prosecutions against Trump are politically motivated.
Trump did not legally incite a riot or insurrection on January 6th.
AND
And, he becomes a colossal embarrassment most of the time he opens his mouth. He either has very little knowledge about what he is talking about most of the time or he just isn’t motivated to try to learn, or both.
Most politicians are narcissistic but Trump laps the field twice over. No matter how vile a person or group of people may be, he’s OK with them if they say nice things about him. He thinks he has Russia and North Korea eating out of his hand, but they see through the art of the deal pretty easily.
Any American who believes in upholding the Constitution should be very, very concerned when it comes to Trump. It’s not that the other side doesn’t play loose with the Constitution, but it certainly appears Trump is completely on board with our founding document until it doesn’t suit his preferences and then he’s ready to subvert it without a moment’s hesitation.
And no one should feel really good about a person who allowed Sidney Powell into his inner circle during a hinge moment in our history. What kind of judgment does that show?
While all of the prosecutions of Trump are politically motivated, he may also be guilty of some of the charges and we should be willing to let the evidence speak for itself, one way or the other.
Trump watched the storming of the Capitol on January 6th like a teenager watches an MTV reality show. It appears he had no concern at all about the safety of his vice president.
Covid
Ideology trumped science during the Covid lockdowns, even with the scientists.
The school shutdowns were a major mistake. It became clear very early that school-age children were least affected by the virus. Yes, adults had to exist in the same buildings and adjustments may have been warranted but a sweeping shutdown is still having extremely negative ramifications.
Covid did severely affect some non-elderly adults without apparent co-morbidities. These, however, were rare. The overwhelming majority of the nation’s resources should have been reserved for the elderly/co-morbid. The more this became apparent, the more the ideologues dug in and tried to justify the sweeping lockdowns.
We dumped trillions into the economy and it is by the grace of God that we haven’t had worse inflationary effects.
It appears to me that more evidence exists to suggest a lab leak than a wet market breakout, but ideology keeps people from admitting that.
Mandating a vaccine that was never fully tested was just wrong.
AND
And, Covid was a very dangerous bug.
It killed a lot of people. Those who suggest that the only ones to die from Covid were those with co-morbidities seem to believe these people were just seconds away from dying anyway when the truth is that most people live close-to-normal lives with all kinds of co-morbidities.
For many — especially the elderly — Covid fear was very justified because they saw their friends die an awful death. They saw their friends unable to breathe, then go into a hospital never to be seen alive again. They died in isolation without the comfort of a loved one near them.
An initial extreme reaction to Covid was understandable. We just didn’t know a lot about it. Within about three months, however, we should have changed the trajectory of our response.
Global Warming
Opinions vary, but it appears the world has been getting a little warmer over the past century or more.
The average global temperature has gone up about two degrees Fahrenheit since the late 1800s and there is some evidence that the oceans are a bit warmer and some of the larger ice areas in Greenland and other places are getting smaller.
AND
And, even though many scientists are convinced the cause is man made, there are also many scientists whose voices are not nearly as magnified who believe either it is not man made or there is no way to accurately determine if the warming is natural or man made.
There are many, many factors that contribute to global climate. To try to isolate one factor as the primary cause is near impossible. It can be argued that the best use of the immense resources currently going into reducing emissions should be put toward preparing for a slightly warmer earth in the near future.
Russia/Ukraine
The United States has allocated more than $100 billion to help defend Ukraine. If there is an end goal, it does not appear to be well stated.
It certainly appears that Ukraine has its share of corruption.
No country, even the United States, can continue to fork over that kind of money in perpetuity.
AND
And, the idea of Russia gaining more territory should make the hair on the back of our neck stand up.
Yes, Ukraine has corruption but is there a government in the world that does not?
To believe that the primary reason for this conflict is because of the possibility of NATO taking in Ukraine seems to be very simplistic and short-sighted.
It’s worth noting I don’t see both sides of every issue. I don’t see any utility in making policies about how we “feel” as a gender. I don’t believe males should be allowed to compete against females in most sports. Outside basic anatomy, sexuality lessons should be reserved for parents, not school systems. Having “safe havens” for open drug use in cities is a disaster. There is no equal comparison between Israel and Hamas. If you want better election integrity, take away mail-in ballots.
It doesn’t mean we can’t have conversations, however.
As far as I can tell, there is really only one important issue in which only one side of the argument is legitimate
Die Hard is a Christmas movie.
Oh my gosh!
I agreed with about 80% of this and I have, in my 65 years of life changed my mind on some issues.
Die Hard is, in fact, a Christmas movie. 🧑🎄
Come out to the coast. We’ll get together …