When some of you read this your preconceived ideas of my writings or what others have said about the newspaper will prevent you from taking my intent from this column: It is called in scientific terms, “intuitive epistemology”. My mother often referred to this as hard-headedness.
We are all guilty of reading into situations with preconceived thoughts. We begin arguing with someone before we even let them finish stating their idea simply because we already “know” what they are going to say.
This human habit is what leads to too many politicians perverting the use of the politics by means of division.
No one can blame Republicans or Democrats for both are equally guilty of it; yet, Donald Trump is probably the most artful at using this tactic as I have seen in my lifetime. (There are newspaper articles that talk about how Huey P. Long in Louisiana could have taught a master class in it, but that is way before my time.)
When politicians are too busy calling each other names and passing resolutions on name calling, we have lost our way. We are divided and focused on the wrong issues. Of course, that is exactly what most politicians want.
Most politicians do not have a clue on how to solve the many true problems vexing our country: a decaying infrastructure, healthcare, child poverty, immigration, or helping farmer’s succeed without bailouts and subsidies, and the list of issues are endless.
It is much easier to call someone a name and declare a war on them. “So, and so is lazy and dumb”. The other side responds back “you are dumb and dumber.”
Most persons take a side based on their perceptions of the person and their own “darker angels”. Everyone is divided, and nothing gets accomplished by anyone except the politicians, who now has targeted groups voting for them.
For this country to succeed and do better, we need to remember the great qualities about our country that bring us together and not the issues that divide us.
All of us should want:
• Good roads and bridges- rebuilding of our infrastructure.
• Freedom of Religion.
• Freedom of Speech.
• Diversity of thought and ideas.
• Basically, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Yet, too many elected leaders see compromise and civility as weakness, rather than the strength of having a backbone. For being civil when the other persons are chanting terrible things is much harder than lashing out. (Just ask any person who is on social media).
If politicians would promote compromise and focus on the issues that unite us, we could be better as a society, as a country, and as neighbors. Yet, most politicians could care less about bringing the sides together since they are too busy pointing out the differences, so they can inflame people’s moods and get them to the voting booths to mark their name. The politics of division have been very successful across the world.
We need persons who are willing and able to raise up our country rather than persons who belittle others and divide us to get a win for themselves and further hurt our country.
“It is a sin to belittle one’s neighbors; blessed are those who help the poor” (as a reader get $5 off a year subscription if you know where that quote is from and for reading my entire column).
Editor’s note: Joseph McCain is the publisher of The Choctaw Plaindealer, The Webster Progress Times and Winston County Journal. He maybe reached at newsroom@winstoncountyjournal.com or 662-803-5236.
