Political "Debate"

I mentioned yesterday -- I know, I know – not the contextualizers and ideologues again – didn’t we beat that dead horse yesterday? If I promise to add some kind of movie quote, can I write about it one more day?

Anyway, before you interrupted, I was saying that some arguments are doomed for failure – meaning that they are lose-lose. Sometimes people argue, and they aren’t really even listening to each other.

Do you like to argue politics? I hate to argue politics with someone. It has become my habit, when politics is mentioned, to just nod my head, make no comment, and hope the conversation stops soon. Isn’t that cynical? It isn’t because I don’t care about the issues – I do. I try to stay informed as much as I can. I have found (and here I am stereotyping) that some people who want to “debate” politics really just want to tell you what they think. Some people do it so that I will agree with them. Other people just like to argue. A third group, dare I call them pseudo-Pharisees, just hope to show how right they are and how wrong I am (don’t I sound judgmental?).

Here are my pet-peeves when it comes to political arguments (I can tell you are just hyperventilating in anticipation):

1. There are some who would try to win a debate by telling me that the other side is “just stupid.” (or some variation of the theme). If you can’t win your argument on its own merits, then keep it to yourself.
2. Another camp would throw insults at it opposing side. We are called to treat each other as children of God, not as a “Babbling, bumbling band of baboons” (That’s your movie quote – I don’t know if it applies or not, but I liked it the first time I heard it – Professor McGonagall says it in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.)
3. Stretching the truth can be – although not admirable – a tool in a debate. But let’s at least have all the facts straight.
4. We (me included) think we are expects on world affairs because we watch CNN or FOX news. We are not, and yet sometimes we act as if we are. I’m not even convinced that CNN and FOX News are experts on world affairs. In addition, we are not an expert on God because we have read the Bible. As Tumnus says in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe concerning Aslan, “He is not a tame lion.” (Could this be a second movie quote?). Please don’t tell me that a hurricane hitting the Gulf Coast is the Wrath of God. How would you know?
5. And could we please avoid stereotyping groups of people in an argument? Statements like, “Everyone thinks…” (have you spoken to everyone?), “No one supports…” (same argument here), “I expected behavior like this from …,” “Women always say…” (Very rarely, if ever, do women always say the same thing), and one of my least favorite, “That group of people (fill in for yourself – Republicans, democrats, poor people, rich people, women, men, politicians, lawyers, doctors, Indian chiefs) always…” I just don’t even hear the rest of the sentence because I am (in my head, as I nod and smile) arguing with you about the stereotype.

Or, maybe I don’t like political arguments because I never win. It's hard to win when you just smile and nod.

One last movie quote, from Two Weeks Notice:
Lucy Kelson: I think you’re the most selfish human being on the planet.
George Wade: Well that's just silly. Have you met everybody on the planet?