I don’t usually get involved in politics, because it seems a topic that many people have a hard time discussing rationally and/or intelligently–and it’s often a bit of a surprise who some of those people are.
One of my coworkers, who was raised overseas, has a nice way to put it: “Arguing politics with an American is like wrestling with a pig. You have to get down into the mud to do it, and it’s hard to accomplish anything except to get tired and dirty. And after a while, you begin to realize that the pig enjoys it.”
But recently I’ve found myself getting sucked into political discussions. Not because someone is attacking my political beliefs and forcing to me to defend them, but because people are attacking the candidates themselves in such ridiculous ways that make me feel that I must, in the name of decency, step in and wrestle the pig.
And note that I wrote candidates and not candidate. I don’t think either candidate is an intrinsically bad or evil person whose election will destroy the country and all its citizens. I have defended both of them against the startlingly ludicrous and baseless rumors I’ve heard coming from both sides.
And now for the discussion topics…
- Is this election different? (or did I daydream through the last few?)
- Would you defend your preferred candidate’s opponent against a slanderous attack, or would you let it pass, thinking that it was OK if it helped your candidate win?
- Is arguing politics with an American really like wrestling a pig? It seems like a good simile, but I’ve never actually wrestled a pig. I want to make sure I’m not insulting pigs unduly.
I’m DannyO, and I approved this message.
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