I detest the race for the President.
This often-vicious, high-stakes battle for the highest office of the land, often tears our country in two. It is during this time that progressive Democrats are pitted against conservative Republicans. In their quest to win the vote, politicians make enemies out of what are otherwise good friends. They stir up a ton of ill will, all to manipulate us to vote them in.
How?
They achieve this divisiveness principally by focusing on the differences among us.
If you watch carefully, you will see that many politicians define citizens of the country by their differences — not the all the commonalities that unite us in day to day life.
In the heat of the battle, each party paints adherents of the “opposing” party as enemies.
As the race for the president intensifies, watch how each party demonizes political leaders and followers of the “opposing” party. What
is more, they do so through exaggerated claims, even outright falsehoods.
Fact is, most of us get along just fine until politicians gearing up for the presidential race begin to fan the flames, spawning ill feelings
among us, even hatred, for those who dance to a different drum beat.
I wish they — the politicians — and we — the people — would keep one important fact in mind during the hate season. That is, truth be told, we are more alike than we are different. We share many of the same attributes and aspirations – far more than the differences politicians focus on.
Republican, democrat, it doesn’t matter: We love our children and our families. We struggle to make our relationships work. We love our homes and work hard to ensure adequate shelter. We love our pets — often surround ourselves with animals that give us the love we crave. We eat and drink – and savor good foods — and struggle to get enough sleep.
We suffer the same bouts of ill health — even terminal illnesses. We all hope for prosperity and a better future. We often struggle to get everything done in a day and struggle to find the money we need to get by.
We love our free time, family outings, sports, entertainment, and much more. What is more, most of us want to belong to something bigger and help make this a better world — even if only in a small way.
As the political ads crowd out the ads urging us to spend more of our hard-earned money on unnecessary junk, remember this: those “enemies” politicians are talking about are your neighbors and coworkers, even your dear friends that you love, respect, and treat kindly day in and day out.
Don’t let the politicians damage these precious relationships for one minute.
I think we should be asking politicians to end the divisiveness, build partnerships, coalitions, and bridges and work together.
Let’s all work together to build a better tomorrow. There is no need for each political party to be a conspiracy against the rest of the nation. We are much more the same than we are different. We will succeed if we hang together, work together to find common ground and solutions to the many vexing problems of our times. Let’s turn this time of hate, as corny as it sounds, into a time of love and appreciation and cooperation.
Contributing editorDan Chirasis a renewable energy and green homes expert who has spent a lifetime learning life’s lessons, which he shares in his popular blog,Dan Chiras on Loving Life. He’s the founder and director of The Evergreen Institute and president of Sustainable Systems Design. Contact him by visitinghis websiteor finding him onGoogle+.
