The Loyal Opposition

Yesterday's tragic shootings in Arizona have made me very sad. A mentally unstable young man killed several people out of a hatred for our government. Many believe that extremest, violent political rhetoric encouraged him to do this terrible thing.

Politics in our country has become very divisive. Loud voices from the extreme right and the extreme left provoke fear and hatred. Politicians with opposing views post pictures of their opponents in the cross-hairs of a rifle and encourage people to take aim. People with different political views are called awful names. Opposing points of view are labeled un-American. The name-calling and extremism have made it hard to even understand what another person is saying. I often want to just stick my head in the sand and ignore the whole mess. Then something like the shooting in Arizona happens and I can't ignore it anymore.

In this big country of ours there are obviously going to be different ideas on the best way to handle the complex problems of our time. We live in a big, diverse world with big complicated issues. There are no easy answers to these problems. My personal political view is on the liberal side. Many of my friends and family are far more conservative and have different ideas than mine on the best policy for a particular situation. None of us really have enough information to know what is truly the best choice. We have to talk to each other and discuss our ideas and our understanding and our goals. Sometimes we have to compromise and not get our way. We have to quit calling each other names. We can never encourage or condone violence.

In the English parliament the minority party often is referred to as the loyal opposition. I like this term. It indicated that there is disagreement about policy without questioning the fact of patriotism. Somehow we have to understand that good, patriotic people can disagree about issues without calling one another names. We have to respect each other and learn to listen to each other.

Can we please speak more softly and listen with open minds?

I love this country. It is my home.

God bless us all.