I'm a bit disturbed by how entrenched a binary society has become in our culture. By binary society, I mean, that as a whole, Americans see most decisions as either one thing or the other. You win or you lose; you're successful or you're not; you're with me or you're against me. This perspective is in everything that goes on in our culture.
In politics, you're a Republican or a Democrat, and you either agree with everything in that party or you don't. The concept of politicians talking, negotiating, and reaching a compromise seems to not have just become foreign, but a negative -- as if the politicians are selling out rather than arriving at a better solution.
However, this sort of behavior expands through everything. Look at online message boards, call-in shows, any place people express themselves. You'll see how people are determined to be either good or bad, no gray, they can't be a bit of both. I was talking with my girlfriend the other day about American Idol. You see people constantly pointing out how people from that show, other than one or two are failures. Failure is a pretty absolute word. The fact is, if you're in a creative field - singing, acting, writing, etc - and you can actually make a living doing your art, you are an unqualified success. However, success is now determined to be ultra-rich and mega-famous, or you lose.
Is it any wonder than many Americans, especially younger ones, aren't trying as hard? The definition of success is almost impossible to meet. The with me or against me culture batters people and tears them apart, unless you're either overwhelmed with apathy or completely lacking empathy.
It's no wonder that most other cultures are having problems understanding us. However, we've also helped form a world where our main export is culture -- so, sadly, many nations are starting to adopt our methodology. It's something we've always wanted, right? Well, the problem is, what happens when their opinion differs? They won't back down or compromise because we won't. It makes our world much less friendly and definitely more dangerous.
It seems to me the biggest danger facing America is extremism, not from without, but from within. We're breeding extremism and it's time to step back from that chasm and start talking again -- not as enemies, but as neighbors.
If you hear a politician from either side use the language of enemies when talking about opponents, send them an e-mail and chastise them. It only takes a minute. If enough people did it, this sort of behavior would stop. Playground behavior has to end, and we have to expect everyone around us to act like adults.
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Not going boom is good
I want to take a quick moment to correct some erroneous beliefs about the nuclear reduction treaty that President Obama just signed. It seems that a lot of people haven't really looked at the treaty and are, instead, following Fox News on the subject.
The US stated it will not use nuclear weapons on countries that do not possess the capability. This is true. However, there are some lies about the the limitations of this treaty -- simply, the Republicans are stating that it will make us weaker because we can defend ourselves against Iran, South Korea, or countries threatening us with biological weapons.
This is false. First, any country that has not signed the UN nuclear non-proliferation treaty is fair game -- namely, Iran and North Korea ... so, they are exempt. Also, it's specifically stated that those countries that attack with WMD, primarily biological/chemical, are also fair game. Basically, all the treaty says is, if you don't have WMD and don't use them against us, we promise not to use them against you.
People, this is good. We want nuclear nations to agree to this. You don't want some tiny pan-Asian nation being nuked to the stone age in a proxy war, because that'll get us bombed ... and, friends, no one wins a nuclear war. No one. We seem to have become blase about nuclear weapons; we've forgotten that both Russia and the US have enough weapons to destroy the planet several times over. I think it's time we act like adults and stop bullying the weak kids on the playground
Anyway, very funny report below by Jon Stewart if you're questioning my picking on Fox News since he directly calls them out for ignoring the facts -- with proof. So, check it out.
The US stated it will not use nuclear weapons on countries that do not possess the capability. This is true. However, there are some lies about the the limitations of this treaty -- simply, the Republicans are stating that it will make us weaker because we can defend ourselves against Iran, South Korea, or countries threatening us with biological weapons.
This is false. First, any country that has not signed the UN nuclear non-proliferation treaty is fair game -- namely, Iran and North Korea ... so, they are exempt. Also, it's specifically stated that those countries that attack with WMD, primarily biological/chemical, are also fair game. Basically, all the treaty says is, if you don't have WMD and don't use them against us, we promise not to use them against you.
People, this is good. We want nuclear nations to agree to this. You don't want some tiny pan-Asian nation being nuked to the stone age in a proxy war, because that'll get us bombed ... and, friends, no one wins a nuclear war. No one. We seem to have become blase about nuclear weapons; we've forgotten that both Russia and the US have enough weapons to destroy the planet several times over. I think it's time we act like adults and stop bullying the weak kids on the playground
Anyway, very funny report below by Jon Stewart if you're questioning my picking on Fox News since he directly calls them out for ignoring the facts -- with proof. So, check it out.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| The Big Bang Treaty | ||||
| ||||
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)