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StrictI am in Dallas this week on business, and last night I was flipping cable channels in my hotel room. I caught part of Dennis Miller’s new talk show on CNBC, and really enjoyed a comment he made during a debate with one of his guests. I’m not sure who the guest was or what exactly they were discussing (it was either directly or indirectly related to the November election), but I’ll lamely try to paraphrase the exchange anyway.
Miller’s guest was lamenting that American politics has, in his opinion, become too polarized lately. Miller replied: “Why is it that people think polarization is bad? Why do so many people think that everyone should be somewhere in the middle, singing kumbaya and agreeing on everything?”
His guest (apparently not expecting someone to argue against polarization being bad) hemmed and hawed something about “I like kumbaya” and that people should be willing to change their minds.
Miller replied “look, the time for sitting on the fence is over. If you’re still in the middle, pick up a newspaper and make up your mind, because it’s on!”
I’m sure I didn’t get it quite right, but I really liked the point he was trying to make. If you don’t know where you stand on Iraq, the war on terror, the economy, and this administration, it’s your duty to make up your mind and let your voice be heard this November.
July 21st, 2004 at 6:27 pm
Hear hear! A political point we agree on. :) I remember two years ago, I didn’t have too strong of feelings on these issues, and made a conscious effort to change that. One of the most effective methods was debate. I found a fair-sized group of intelligent and mostly well-informed, well-read, respectful individuals across the political spectrum. Early last year, they debated whether we should go to war in Iraq, and listening to them, participating, and researching some of the points they made helped me make up my own mind and form an opinion that was truly mine.
But I can’t say I disagree with everything the guest said either. While you should have opinions that you can support, I believe you should also be willing to change those opinions, in cases of, as Churchill said, "convictions of honor and good sense." Otherwise you become, as Thomas Paine said, a slave to your present opinion. (Apologies if I’ve overquoted.)
The problem with "hurry up and make up your mind" is that you’ll likely start off (and hopefully but not necessarily changing soon thereafter) repeating someone else’s viewpoints, instead of hearing both sides and making up your mind for yourself. That’s what bothers me when these ad campaigns say, "Go vote! Go vote now! You have to!" without offering any advice for making an INFORMED vote, which is far more valuable than an ignorant one.
Regardless, I don’t think we have any reason for concern that people will all end up in the middle holding hands and singing kumbaya anytime soon!