Writer's Block: Do (political) opposites attract?

[tabular_rasa]

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First of all, define "respect." I certainly respect the right of others to hold an opinion distinct from mine; I wouldn't be entitled to my own if they weren't entitled to theirs. That said, I feel absolutely no obligation to respect the opinion itself. I'm pretty good about considering why people feel the way they do, since most people have valid reasons for believing what they believe, but just because I can see how someone might justify their viewpoint doesn't mean they've proved their correctness. There are a lot of idiots in the world, and just because you can logic something out doesn't mean it's correct.

However, when it comes to political opinions influencing my respect for a person in his or her entirety-- no. People are so much deeper than the political opinions to which they subscribe-- especially when, for better or worse, many people don't even put that much thought into them. In high school I knew so many Republicans who were Republicans because their parents were but couldn't tell you the first thing the Republican Party stands for, or were For Prayer In Schools but completely misunderstood the issue and were proponents of something they didn't truly understand simply because it sounded good. But even those who believe strongly in causes I find misguided or even cruel-- and are well educated enough that I can't even just write them off as ignorant-- are not necessarily indecent or immoral people when it comes to my daily interaction with them. Voting differently than me on one ambiguous political topic doesn't really say anything about their character otherwise. Is it really dangerous to my children that my trustworthy and competent babysitter is an opponent of same-sex marriage? Is it really a deal breaker that my boyfriend once voted for Bush? I'm sure it helps that I grew up where I did; I would have alienated myself from about 90% of the population-- including most of my family-- if I couldn't find a way to be civil in spite of political disagreement. And I've come to see that there's just so much more to people than their political views.

Now, when the politics becomes consistently relevant to our interaction, we might have a trust issue, however. When Bush was in power with so many views so disparate from my own and the power to act on them, I didn't trust him. When he acted on them, and especially when those actions failed, I lost respect for him. However, that still doesn't mean I wouldn't trust him to drive my car or watch my kids, because those things have nothing to do his thoughts on Middle Eastern dictatorships, torture, or religion in schools. I don't want a misogynist for a boyfriend, a pro-Mandatory Prayer In Schools principle for my boss, or an opponent of birth control for unmarried women for my gynecologist, but I could probably deal with a misogynist, mandatory prayer proponent, or birth control opponent as a friend.

It can get tricky when I feel like someone's viewpoint is genuinely harmful to people, too. Does befriending a neo-Nazi or a member of the KKK mean I sanction his beliefs? But if you think about it, refusing to interact with someone because of their views doesn't help the situation. No one learns anything, no one changes. Wouldn't I be better off trying for friendship in the hopes that they'll come to better understand my perspective and shift from theirs? (Even if that may be a very idealistic goal to hope for /-:). At the very least, when so many issues I take offense to revolve around tolerance, isn't it better to stand by my principles and tolerate those who disagree with me? Even if they can't even tolerate me, nothing's stopping me standing my ground and proving my rightness with my actions.

In other news, it's 7:45 pm and I am WIPED. It doesn't help knowing that Robert (whose time I am still on) just went to bed. I'm going to try to hold off at least a couple hours by doing my dishes and taking a hot bath, but I imagine I will be waking up pretty early tomorrow. I guess better that than needing to sleep in, huh?

Comments

[sidheblessed.livejournal.com]

This post made me think. I generally choose not to associate with people whose views I cannot respect. It never occured to me that I might help them change their point of view, if they wish, if I choose to befriend rather than shun them.

[tabular-rasa.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you found it thought-provoking! As I mentioned, a good part of it is my upbringing; I couldn't afford to be picky about the viewpoints of my friends and acquaintances. Sadly, our culture is so divided, and there's very little conversation between factions. Instead of arguing black and white for issues, I'm sure there must be compromises that can be reached by communication between the two. So I might have to give a little, but they will, too.