Back to Politics

So, the whole Chick-fil-a thing.  It's a bit out of proportion, no?  Of course, the owner is a bigoted, ignorant jerk, but the same can be said of thousands of people sending money to "defense of marriage associations".  Choosing to eat or not eat at a particular restaurant just isn't the most compelling form of political activism.  That's just barely nudging one corner of the problem.  And this relates not only to the advocacy for or against marriage equality, but every issue on the political spectrum.

Violent outbursts only strengthen the partisan divide.  What we need, rather than screaming across this crevasse, hoping that the other side will be able to hear at least a few words, is to find common ground. And that can be very difficult when being bombarded with offensive, personal statements, but it's the only way to reach the people in the middle.  Those are the only ones worth going after, really.  

The most vital part of enacting change is to compel those with silent opinions to speak.  Indifference is the antithesis of any society pursuing a true democracy.  Protesting or embracing a restaurant isn't the way to express this lack of apathy, though.  There are so many more vital ways of showing support, without fighting against an immovable force; the owner of the chain and those like him are very, very firm in their beliefs.  People like that will not be persuaded.  You can't touch their ideology, no matter how distasteful it may be.  And this is where the necessary form of communication comes in:  we need to have real, rational conversations between open-minded individuals who are actually willing to debate fairly.  In this and all current political issues.  Of course, it's nowhere near as entertaining as listening to the constant flow of verbal sparring, but it's the only way to really get things done.

The problem is when attacks start to migrate from the ideology to the individual.  And both religion and sexual self-expression are very deeply felt, intrinsic, and often fragile forms of identity.  Attacks on any of these areas are automatically going to create a defensive reaction, which escalates conflict and creates an impasse.

So, how do we fix it?  By appealing to the aforementioned middle-ground.  People who have opinions, but will listen, and will allow those opinions to be changed if new information is presented.  By becoming more involved in every aspect of political culture, and doing real research before taking a side.  Put aside personal prejudice, and look at both arguments.  Look at the tactics used by both sides.  It does take a lot more work.  It can be incredibly frustrating and aggravating.  But anger is still more worthy than apathy, and does more to dislodge the ennui infecting our culture.