Can't we just be friends?

10/28/08 - Republicans, Democrats, liberals, conservatives, Jews, Muslims, Catholics, Protestants, pro-life, pro-choice, race, ethnicity, vegetarian, vegan, omnivore, language.After watching some political debates, I became increasingly aware of how depressing they are. Two candidates, representing two different ideological groups, argue and criticize each other to no end.

They differ on matters relating to how to bring about a peaceful conclusion to the War in Iraq, how to guarantee better health care, how to fix the economy and help the middle class, etc.

Anyone who has paid at least a small amount of attention to the candidates and their views can see that both sides have a solution they feel strongly about. They see every other solution as either inferior and less effective or as problematic and a direct threat to the achievement of whichever goal is being pursued.

For example, Barack Obama believes that there should be universal healthcare, and John McCain believes that the healthcare market needs to be opened up for free trade. Both presidential candidates simply want people to be able to have affordable and reliable access to health care and insurance.

So, what am I getting at?

I am sick and tired of watching people fight over differences of opinion. Politicians should recognize the fact that neither side is in love with war, wearing a swastika, nor otherwise undermining what they believe the American value system stands for. Just because people have different approaches to conflict, does not mean that one side has to be wrong and the other right. We live in a democracy, so our country believes that the government is stronger when there are more people and ideas involved in its decision-making process.

The same ideas I have just expressed can be related to religion.

It is only fair that I should establish my own religious views for you, the reader. I will be the first to admit that I believe in God and that I attend a Protestant church when I get the chance. Still, I am not of the belief that my way of life is the only way of life that is correct, or that what I believe is what everyone else should believe.

The world is full of different religions. There are different names for God, religious practices, historical backgrounds and ways of life. What makes one religion better than another? I cannot answer that question at this point of my life. I could say that my beliefs do not support polygamy, but there was a time in the Bible when kings had several concubines and thought nothing of it. They were still respected and considered completely religious and faithful men. I could say my beliefs do not support murder, yet I do believe that there is a time for war.

My thesis, which I have already mentioned in part, is that people spend too much time focusing on the differences in each other to recognize that we are all just trying to make sense of our lives. In the opening, I mentioned the issues of pro-life vs. pro-choice as well as veganism and vegetarianism. I have my stances on these issues, but the fact remains that everyone is going to have a different view.

If people cannot see that humans are far more alike than they are not, then there will never be the remotest appearance of peace in the world. If they cannot see past the colors of skin, religious beliefs, languages and political ideologies, of their fellow men and women, then they only limit themselves. They only allow themselves to see the world through own eyes. I do not believe that there is any shame in that, but I do not know why a person would not want to explore the world he or she is in from every vantage point.