I really considered making this blog apolitical, but after some thought I realized that politics specifically and social awareness in general are things that I am passionate about, and it would be useful to integrate those ideas in a personal blog of musings because it is information and knowledge I pursue on a daily basis.
I love a good political debate. I enjoy listening to political shows and dissecting the information I obtain from them to separate legitimate facts from those that are simply sordid opinion. You see, my process is that I hear the information, and then I seek the means to either prove or disprove the information I’ve heard before I store it in my brain as potential debate material. These are obvious qualities of a liberal mind. I say that because in discussions with those of a different political bend (and you know who you are), I find that often times the debate descends into information that has most often been previously dismissed by legitimate sources. As an example, I really am sick of the “socialism” label perpetrated by many on the right and even the center. There is no viable indication that the U.S. is sliding into socialism, yet the right has successfully scared many of our population into believing it is inevitable given the current administration. I have no doubt this is a popular position for the Republicans given that fear is easy to arouse in their members (an article published in Science magazine discusses the link between conservatism and high physiological response to fearful noises and images – see http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/321/5896/1667 for abstract).
I can understand that there would be differences between the political parties, but how do you debate someone lacking in critical thinking? Why are we all suddenly debating FACTS? It’s amazing to me that the leaders of the right have the ability to question even solid scientific evidence and a huge percentage of their followers likewise come to the same conclusion (I’m talking specifically about evolution and global warming here). I wonder why they haven’t attacked the principles of gravity and a sun-centered universe – of course, those issues probably wouldn’t be big vote-getters, but they sure would be divisive, wouldn’t they?
I love a good political debate. I enjoy listening to political shows and dissecting the information I obtain from them to separate legitimate facts from those that are simply sordid opinion. You see, my process is that I hear the information, and then I seek the means to either prove or disprove the information I’ve heard before I store it in my brain as potential debate material. These are obvious qualities of a liberal mind. I say that because in discussions with those of a different political bend (and you know who you are), I find that often times the debate descends into information that has most often been previously dismissed by legitimate sources. As an example, I really am sick of the “socialism” label perpetrated by many on the right and even the center. There is no viable indication that the U.S. is sliding into socialism, yet the right has successfully scared many of our population into believing it is inevitable given the current administration. I have no doubt this is a popular position for the Republicans given that fear is easy to arouse in their members (an article published in Science magazine discusses the link between conservatism and high physiological response to fearful noises and images – see http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/321/5896/1667 for abstract).
I can understand that there would be differences between the political parties, but how do you debate someone lacking in critical thinking? Why are we all suddenly debating FACTS? It’s amazing to me that the leaders of the right have the ability to question even solid scientific evidence and a huge percentage of their followers likewise come to the same conclusion (I’m talking specifically about evolution and global warming here). I wonder why they haven’t attacked the principles of gravity and a sun-centered universe – of course, those issues probably wouldn’t be big vote-getters, but they sure would be divisive, wouldn’t they?
I do wonder at times if perhaps I’m being too harsh on those with opposing political views. I think maybe I haven’t yet spoken to the Conservative who really is a member of that party simply because they represent less government and fiscal responsibility but disagrees with those party leaders and the media who spew utterly false information to their constituents/viewers. I’d like to – I do respect someone who represents the “pure” Republican philosophy and debates me on those issues, which is almost a pleasure. I just do not want to once again find myself defending global warming or evolution when someone discovers my political leanings. That debate was waged and won already. Of course, if you want to talk about offshore drilling or health care reform, I say, “Bring it on”!
No comments:
Post a Comment