Not in Congress but at least in some sectors of Cyberspace, I am starting to notice a change in attitude. Bloggers from the center left and center right are putting rancor aside when discussing issues of vital public concern. Are the twin crises of Daesh and Ebola - plus far rightwing fringe fatigue - driving a newfound convergence of opinion? Will the time-honored art of compromise and consensus return to public life – without the “my-way-or-the-highway” intransigence that has caused past resentments and deadlock? Or am I being irrational and unreal with foolish optimism?
"the time-honored art of compromise and consensus"
ReplyDeleteOh yea? Why you miserable Commie -- whadda ya mean by that?
It's never foolish to be optimistic. But I've been foolish in thinking one can "make nice" with lunatics.
ReplyDeleteMaking nice< really isn't the goal. Showing respect for honest and sincere views that differ from ones own is.
ReplyDeleteGetting individuals to listen and consider alternative thinking is the best one can or
should hope to accomplish.
That's how I see it at any rate.
There are those who are there not to listen or to express themselves but simply to indulge their love of insulting people. Any attempt at converting their "observations" into rational dialog is doomed because they see it as weakness and will keep elevating the insults until they get the outcome, the attention they're looking for.
ReplyDeleteThey pretend to be easily insulted but it's only to use the pretext to escalate the exchange. They have no other purpose. They have no other capability, no other goal.