Its truly sick to see some of the ways people talk about a political opponent, and the President no less, these days. There's not respect anymore left in politics and thats what's really dividing people. People can still get along if they disagree politically however today if someone isn't perfectly in line they suddenly become the scum of the earth.
How can you claim any moral high ground? Is that the America you want to create, one where one's political party is in charge and all dissents against it are mocked, called vile insults, treated as idiots, and disrespected in all other aspects of life to the point where there's not even communication between the two? Pardon me if I don't want to create a cult of snobbery, and this goes out to people on both sides by the way, where all non-members are treated as second class citizens and not as equals and Americans one and the same.
Regardless of your political viewpoints Americans are or at least were, and should be a people of unregulated equality in politics. One man's vote is worth the same as any other's, to the bum on the street to the wealthiest American. To a left-wing Commie and a right-wing fascist. Being an American citizen and having the ability to cast a vote gives us each the RIGHT to an equally valid viewpoint and perspective. We're all Americans, and we all have a say in our government, and each one of us should respect each other's right to that say. When you say these things, there's no respect.
Now don't give me any crap about how the other side isn't showing me any respect so why should I as a party member/support/individual? Again, its about the moral high ground. You take the moral high ground because you are better, its your sign and banner that proves the level of maturity and devotion to the principles of this country you have achieved. And there will be sacrifices for taking that stance. Whether its having to bite one's tongue, educate yourself beyond pundits and biased news, accepting one's errors when they realized rather than simply rationalizing it away because one cannot accept the enemy's victory, or even taking a bullet for those principles. However Americans were killed in Iraq or Afghanistan because we choose the moral high ground? I'll tell you the answer is every single of one of them, we have the nuclear capacity to have destroyed both those countries ending whatever threat may have existed there without losing a single life. Of course there are realpolitik considerations but many Americans on the ground have died to avoid civilian causalities, avoid destruction of building, etc. They have died because as a nation we have said that we will conduct warfare in a way which is morally higher than our enemies and we have paid for it in lives. One may not see the reason, but there is a value in that banner when we say that we took the RIGHT action even though it cost us more, and though the world may or may not recognize it, we as Americans should and be damn proud we tried even if we fail. And we should recognize when we fail in that standard, whether its Abu Graid or referring to a political opponent as some childish insult, or mocking him like an elementary school child.
That is the standard for the country, that is the standard for the individual. Without it you as a political advocate are no better than your opponents who use the same tactics against you, regardless of what they believe, and as a nation we'd be no better than our enemies. At the point we lose that standard the fight is meaningless, because even though the rhetoric and names will change nothing else will. In politics we go from Dems to Reps and from Reps to Dems and all it is for all practical concerns is a D or an R on TV screen and a different face, but for the citizens nothing changes. In war it simply becomes a war of extermination waged by both sides, and regardless of who wins, everybody loses when its all said and done. People, civilians, are died, control has moved from one group to another, but humanity as a whole as not been advanced forward. Luckily we hold onto some of that high standard in our warfare, Iraq and Afghanistan will hopefully one day be better places for us having that standard and if they fail then we should be held to that failure but at least we can say we tried, some.
