striker42
Well-known member
Our political climate is a vicious one and I think this board is probably a good example of this. Political adversaries are not portrayed as a fellow American with a different point of view but as a mortal enemy who is actively trying to harm you or as an idiot that isn't intelligent enough to see the truth.
In reality, I find that it's rarely a matter of good or evil and that it's often not a matter of intelligence, it is instead a question of priorities. And that's the core of the issue. I don't think people accept enough that someone can have different priorities and that it's okay for that to be the case.
For example, I value being left alone. I want to live my life with limited government interference in my life and a low tax burden. I want the government to keep others from harming me, maintain infrastructure (roads, dams, etc), provide for the national defense, and then stay largely out of my business. What I want to do with my own life is my business and that's what I value.
I do acknowledge that others have different priorities. They value an interconnected community with the government playing the central role. Giving support to those who need it, providing numerous programs and benefits, providing strong regulation, etc.
It's not that what I value is better than what others value, it's simply that we value different things. It's more a matter of preference than of intelligence or morality.
The problem comes with the fact that none of us can achieve our ideal society without the participation of others and our ideal societies are often mutually exclusive. However, someone advocating for government action that is repugnant to your preferences does not make that person evil or an idiot.
So I encourage people to remember, especially as we draw closer to the election, that we're all stuck in this boat together and that someone with different political priorities does not make that person evil.
In reality, I find that it's rarely a matter of good or evil and that it's often not a matter of intelligence, it is instead a question of priorities. And that's the core of the issue. I don't think people accept enough that someone can have different priorities and that it's okay for that to be the case.
For example, I value being left alone. I want to live my life with limited government interference in my life and a low tax burden. I want the government to keep others from harming me, maintain infrastructure (roads, dams, etc), provide for the national defense, and then stay largely out of my business. What I want to do with my own life is my business and that's what I value.
I do acknowledge that others have different priorities. They value an interconnected community with the government playing the central role. Giving support to those who need it, providing numerous programs and benefits, providing strong regulation, etc.
It's not that what I value is better than what others value, it's simply that we value different things. It's more a matter of preference than of intelligence or morality.
The problem comes with the fact that none of us can achieve our ideal society without the participation of others and our ideal societies are often mutually exclusive. However, someone advocating for government action that is repugnant to your preferences does not make that person evil or an idiot.
So I encourage people to remember, especially as we draw closer to the election, that we're all stuck in this boat together and that someone with different political priorities does not make that person evil.
