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Flame » in reply to re: Well Speak Up Damn It

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Robert — (archived)

I guess the thorniest problem is to define what it means for someone else to listen to you (me, us). I can't help but think that it's not just the other guy, but that logically it must be both sides of the conversation, and an unwillingness to accept other than unconditional surrender. That's nowhere near the same thing as "listening".

I wouldn't be the first to observe that part of what's fed the partisan polarization is the fear that to make even one concession is to start down the slippery slope to defeat. It's the fear that the "other side" will exploit one concession to reasonableness to chain together a series of implied concessions leading to capitulation to a position one finds extreme and repugnant.

The phenomenon is reinforced by peer pressure and "party discipline". When I started thinking about the common ground I find with "Classic Conservatives", I felt as though I had to phrase it carefully to avoid being accused of switching sides, of "betraying" my side with such a concession.

More recently, I've felt as if I'm walking a tightrope to both maintain my sincerely- and consistently-held belief that it was a horrendous mistake to invade Iraq, while at the same time acknowledging Colin Powell's wisdom: We broke it, we own it. And not just owning Iraq, but owning a strategic situation in general that I believe has made America far less safe than it was before the invasion.

The point isn't to argue that here, but that every aspect of the situation feels as if I'm on the knife's edge. The stakes are so high in reality that discussions of it are powered by the same sense of urgency and danger.

But why should I feel that some of my fellow Americans are dangerous? Aren't we all in this together? I think we need to figure out a way to bring that sentiment to the fore, to take a deep breath and make the leap of faith to trust other Americans.

Pat Buchanan hasn't gotten as much attention as he has lately since he ran for President, and I find the guy growing on me. I'll never agree with him on most things, but I respect the honest way he's speaking his mind. He was against the war from the beginning, but he's not about to give the Democrats a pass. He's holding everybody's feet to the fire, regardless of party, and I wonder if maybe we can't take a lesson from Pat. If there is a line that can legitimately be drawn in this country, isn't it really the people versus the politicians? They've maneuvered us into going for each others' throats, and maybe we should wise up and not let them pull those strings any more.

We've seen that we can't trust the politicians to do the right thing by America. Who else but us?

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