Why is there so much hate between Americans these days? Reading several comments sections about political stories tonight I realized how deeply this hatred goes….and I cannot understand it. People are acting as if our country is going to fundamentally change next January. These ideas come mostly from the people not wanting Barack Obama to be president. I say this not out of partisanship, because most Obama supporters believe nothing is going to change if McCain is president. First of all, let’s admit this. A McCain presidency will be better for the country than a George W. Bush one. And an Obama presidency isn’t going to socialize America. We aren’t simply going to disregard the constitution and turn this country into a huge government babysitter.
Yes, some things will change if Barack Obama is president. I’m putting my hope into the thought that the changes will be for the better. Anyone who thinks that we are all of a sudden going to be stripped of our right to bear arms is out of it. This is not the priority of the Democratic party. The Democratic party wants to change energy policies, economic policies (not socialize it), and wants to improve health care. They are not going to drastically change a thing. Besides, there are checks and balances for a reason. This isn’t a dictatorship. Even IF Obama wanted to do these things that I read about, they would NEVER pass Congress. Even a Democratic controlled Congress is too moderate to pass some of the ideas that I’ve seen floated around.
We have to stop with all the hatred. Let the politicians do the dirty work. Let’s keep on them about their policies. Let’s not resort to name calling and getting so worked up that we forget what this election is about: us. All conservatives are not hawkish, rich, old, racist white guys who praise Jesus and own guns. All liberals aren’t baby-hating, big government loving, godless homosexuals. People on both sides of the spectrum want the same thing.: A better life. We all want our jobs to pay more money, gas prices to be lowered and basically to be left alone to live our lives as we see fit. People may disagree with how to accomplish these things, and that’s fine. There is no reason that we cannot all get along. No one is completely right and no one is completely wrong. We have to listen to each other and come up with ideas that work for everyone. The back and forth is getting us nowhere. We need to come together as a country and move forward. When we actually sit down and discuss issues, you may see that we aren’t too far apart. But the hateful words and name-calling are just pushing America further away from what she was meant to be.
