Getting to the Heart of it.

I read this poem from Shel Silverstein's "Where the Sidewalk Ends" tonight, and thought I'd share it to hopefully spur some intelligent discussion on the relevance of polical debate to the everyday lives of real people.  There is definitely good reason we live in a representative democracy.  Most people just want to be left alone.  Well, enjoy:

     OUTSIDE OR UNDERNEATH?

Bob bought a hundred-dollar suit
But couldn't afford any underwear.
Says he, "If your outside looks real good
No one will know what's under there."

Jack bought some hundred-dollar shorts
But wore a suit with rips and tears.
Says he, "It won't matter what people see
As long as I know what's under there."

Tom bought a flute and a box of crayons,
Some bread and cheese and a golden pear.
And as for his suit or his underwear
He doesn't think about them much...or care.

Politics and Civility

As much as I dislike blindly forwarded e-mails, especially political ones, I thank Tora for sending me a link to the recent Catholic Church ad.  I was disappointed by the text before the link referencing "Dems." It almost made me delete the e-mail without even clicking the link. But I didn't, and what I experienced was both powerful and refreshing.  (It can be found on youtube if you haven't seen it.)More than the specific issues that were raised in the ad, I was impressed by the tone of it.  This is what I got out of the message:

"We won't tell you which person or party you should choose to represent you in government.  However, here are the principle values we think you should base your decision on.  We trust your intelligence and morality.  Please, vote your values."

I wish more political discussions around this time were about issues and how they relate to our personal values than "what type of person someone must be if they support a different candidate than I do".  Isn't life about exercising our agency?  Aren't there multiple valid approaches to every problem depending on what order we place our values in?

I believe that two equally moral people may have the same set of core values, and yet depending on the order of importance they place them in, may come up with drastically different opinions on the morality of a particular policy. 

In addition to that, I believe two equally intelligent and educated persons can have differing opinions about the best way to address an issue of importance based upon their individual expertise, culture, and life experiences.

For anyone who disagrees with this thinking, I would ask you:

"Why else would the leaders of government, religion, and business alike, consistently surround themselves with counselors and experts of all sorts?" 

"Why else would a two-party dominated, democratic republic be the most successful governmental model in the world?"

For anyone who thinks that an incomplete subset of facts (and that is all any of us can hope to have at our disposal) will lead all intelligent, moral, passionate people to the same conclusion, do yourself a favor and read a book on the history and development of science before you further embarass yourself, and alienate your close friends.

When it comes to politics, above all, I call for civility.

Discuss...

~Ammon