moderates

[dragonlady7]

Does anyone remember when Clinton was running for office the first time, and it was this big deal that he was a moderate?
Moderates were this sort of revolution. Everyone was a moderate. It was so cool to be moderate. It was a big trend. Compromise, trying to please the great silent middle majority, etc.

Whatever happened to that?

What I hate about all the extremism that's so faddish today is that it dehumanizes the opposition. Think about it.
I strongly, strongly disagree with what Ann Coulter has to say. I am highly displeased with her hatemongering in such a delicate time. There is no call for that, and I think it's deeply irresponsible. In short, I really dislike her.

But if she were sitting across from me in a restaurant, and got a piece of food stuck in her throat, and was choking, I would administer the Heimlich maneuver and try to save her life if I could.
Why?
Because she's a person. I dislike her professional habits and I find her beliefs repugnant, but she's still a person, for all that. And she has a perfect right to say what she believes. I can at least respect that.

I don't know if she'd save my life in her turn, in this deeply hypothetical situation, but that's beside the point. I am, after all, hirsute and slightly fragrant and braless. (Actually, I just shaved my legs last night, and I'm only not wearing a bra because I just got out of bed. I'd never leave the house without one.)

Well, she might-- I think I'm a moderate rather than a liberal.

But my point is, there are no officially recognized moderates. It wouldn't matter to her. I'm not her ally so I'm not a rational, intelligent human being-- I'm a spawn of Satan.
Nobody seems to want to cater to the great silent masses of the middle, who just want their country back-- from terrorists, from fear, from radicals, from zealots, from this strange undefined God that the President keeps throwing around (I had a God of my own and was quite happy with him, and I don't know who the President's God is because he never said, but I have a suspicion he's not the same as mine).

And you have to wonder, how long until someone takes the inevitable view that the enemy of my enemy is my friend? I mean, shit-- maybe it's better to let Al Qaeda destroy the U.S. because they're the enemy of the liberals. Maybe it's cutting off your nose to spite your face, but you'd be defeating those damn Democrats once and for all if you blew up Congress, now wouldn't you?

Not that I believe that, because of course the Republicans are all humans and I would be sorry to see any of them hurt, just as I would be sorry for the Democrats.

But please, I beg all of you who hold extreme viewpoints-- please be considerate, please think what fiery rhetoric can do, and please don't try to dehumanize your opponents. We are all just people. It's irresponsible to imply otherwise, and drags the whole debate down into meaninglessness. Start from the assumption that your opponent, while frustrating, is also probably a rational human being with the same basic values as you-- wants to eat food, doesn't want to get shot-- and behave accordingly!

Comments

Lindorien...

[lindorien.livejournal.com]

...raises moderate hand. Realizes it's a wimpy substitute for real passion. Also realizes its where most of the work of living, working, governing, etc. takes place.

Ann Coulter...

has found which side of the bread her butter is on and acts accordingly.

Re: Lindorien...

[dragonlady7.livejournal.com]

>bread her butter is on

Yes, I suppose that's what annoys me the most of all-- that's her professional take on things. It's quite widespread-- extremism sells better than moderation-- but people take it too seriously and actually begin to believe these things that are said to effect.

And that is the most irresponsible and frustrating thing about all of it.