To the people that listen to reason, both on the right and on the left:
Look, we all have our differences. I take neither side, and subsequently have to fight both sides on issues, and even I can find a way to get along with both groups. My ability to negotiate may be a part of this, but the fact that I can do business with, get along with, and even make friends with people that have wildly different ideas and politics says a lot, particularly because I’m the kind of person that will tell you the truth with little regard as to how it will affect myself. And its here where I will say the appropriate cliché: If I can do it, so can you.
If I, the guy that celebrates when I piss off a friend with facts and vicious attacks to the point that they unfriend me, can communicate with people I vehemently disagree with, you can too. Honestly, just about everything the Left crusades for, as nice as it sounds, is fucking stupid. They’re insolvent, destructive, and harmful to just about everyone they affect. They still have good ideas we need to work on and promote. And though I just said all of your ideas are shit, most of the people on my friend’s list are on the Left; they believe this. And if my experience still holds true, if I showed up at a party held by them, I would be welcomed with open arms, quite literally with some of my favorite people.
Just the same with the Right. There are many things you Eighties get, well, right, but there areany thingsyou get fucking wrong. I don’t need to say them, I think you know what they are. Yet even though some of the things you believe in piss me off, we remain good friends. And more importantly, there are things both you and the Left agree with. And that’s what, through so many words, want to bring out here.
To all of you, I get that you’re on the Left, or the Right, for a reason. You both have opposing views, some of them things you will never be able to see eye to eye on. I understand, its the way you were raised, what your experiences were, yada yada yada. But talking to both sides, and quite a few more, there are so many things that you both agree on. And for the people, on both sides, that choose to use reason, facts, and evidence to both present their ideas and listens to others, we need to come together. No matter what your beliefs are, everyone has goals that coincide with others, and whether you disagree on how to get to them or not, you can still negotiate and work towards those goals. Despite our differences, you can still help make the land wwe live in better for everyone. That not includes your political enemies, that also includes your friends, your family, your coworkers and bosses, your customers, your store clerks and warehouse workers and delivery drivers and road workers and IT guys and plumbers and electricians and musicians and bloggers and actors and, well, go down the list.
To those that can be reasoned with. You’re better than all of this. You’re better than the fear, the anger, the envy, the feeling of injustice that The Stupid have been making you feel. Deep down, and I realize I’m making a wild assumption here, you care about other people. Even if it’s a selfish belief, just to make sure other people are there to help you, you still care. For better or worse, we as human beings are social tribal creatures, and a good side of that is that we evolved to stick together to help each other out and therefore progress as a species.
That’s what I am asking for now. Yes, The Stupid are the majority today, and they don’t think this way, I understand that. I’m not talking to them here; I have another presentation on how to deal with them coming later. This is for the actual humans that think, the intellectually honest, the rational people. You’re here, you’re reading this, and you may be on a side that disagrees with the opposite side, but you CAN STILL THINK.
Use that ability. Think. Be open. Ask the other side for their side of the story, and work toward a solution that works for you both. Learn to stop seeing each others as enemies, and maybe embrace each other as friends! Stranger things have happened, after all, and if two opposing armies can have a friendly soccer game and give each other presents during Christmas, you can invite over a Leftist or a Conservative for dinner and have a reasoned discussion about things you can agree on. I know it can be scary. I know you may not want conflict. I know it can go wrong. I know, all of that has happened to me personally. Do it anyway. Reach out for those you were told were your enemies.
Because deep down, when it comes down to it, they’re really your friends. If disaster strikes, whether they agree with who or what your vote for or not, they’ll be there to help you, and you them. And right now, we, all of the people capable of reason, all of is that use philosophy and facts and evidence and free and good will in our lives, all of us need to band together. All of us need to set aside our differences and work towards what we agree with. It may not be pretty. But it’ll be a hell of a lot better than what we have now.
Let’s do this. I have little faith in humanity, and yet here I am, on no side, no team. Here I am, with my hand extended. Will you take it?