9.08.2009

and then my heart hurt...

You know, sometimes people get completely out of hand when it comes to how they treat political issues. It's such a terrible cycle. Today, the mudslinging is toward those who disagree with our president addressing children directly in schools. It really is sad. People are being called things like "uneducated hicks" just because they differ in opinion from someone else. There is no purpose in name calling or mocking. It just doesn't make sense. There will always be differences in opinion between groups. That is just a fact. The important thing is how we deal with those differences. Calling people that disagree with you ignorant or uneducated just spreads hate and hard feelings. It would help situations like this greatly if people could step back and try to understand why the other side feels the way they do. After that, just drop it! It doesn't matter what CNN or Fox News is saying. If you don't like watching one or the other and hearing what "lies" they are spreading... don't watch it! All it does is cause hard feelings.

I know a lot of very well educated, non hick, very sweet, very loving, very non judgmental, conservatives. They are, in fact, some of the best people I know. It hurts me to hear them being called names by people that are the other best people I know.

I really don't take sides on this issue. I see both sides very clearly. That's why I think that having parents sign a permission slip to let their kids watch the address is a great way to deal with it.

The fact is, parents are allowed to feel however they want about the education of their kids. I can remember back when I was in elementary school. There was a very wealthy man that wanted to land his very large private plane at the McCall airport. People felt that it was too dangerous because the landing pattern went right over the school. Others thought that those people were just complaining because they didn't like the man in the plane. Some parents pulled their kids out of school for the day in protest, some parents let their kids go. It doesn't really matter who was right or who was wrong in the situation. The important thing is that those parents were allowed to choose what they felt was best for their kids in that situation.

Another example. In jr. high, dances were held during school hours. I was not allowed to go to school dances until I was 16. It was just a house rule that bothered the hell out of me but that my parents had made. For those dances, the school was required to have a permission slip from kids so that parents were still in control of what happened with their kids. It made it impossible for me to sneak into a school dance. However, it also meant that my parents, who were uncomfortable with their 13 year old daughter being at a school dance, were still able to make that choice for me and themselves.

The fact is, no matter how you feel, parents are still in control of their kids. You don't agree with them? Tough. The best thing that people can do is be loving, on both sides. Respect one another. You want people to see your side of an argument? Then be nice and respectfully hear what they have to say from the opposing side.

Okay. I'm done now. If you hate what I had to say, I'm sorry. But, the great thing is, I can feel the way I do without fear. (Well, if you know me, you know I'm actually terrified of writing stuff like this and that I could never actually say any of it to someone's face, but you know what I mean.)

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