Saturday, March 18, 2006
EDITOR:
In a previous letter, I expressed my awe and amazement at the degenerating mental state of Democrats. Basically, I wrote that they have been reduced to ranting and raving and spouting slogans. Not really a very controversial observation, but it sure elicited a heated response.
One caller unloaded a hail of obscenities mixed with a few criticisms and a condemnation of Republicans. This was in the form of a message on my answering machine. After concluding that tirade, he called back and left this message, "Remember, @#% & amp; Bush lied; thousands died."
This little episode raises two interesting points. First, people shouldn't abandon their sense of civility for the sake of a few politicians. A central theme of America is that we live for ourselves and, to the extent that we are charitable, for others. Americans do not live for the government and the political opportunists that populate it. Politicians feed on animated sycophants and the turmoil they generate. A peaceful society is built on civility. Without it, we live in various states of anarchy and oppression.
The second interesting point involves how people respond to stimuli. If someone said to me that I had been cursing a lot lately, a reasoned response might be, "Gee, I hadn't noticed. I'll have to be more careful." Responding with "Mind you own @#$%$ business, you @#$%$ @#$% & amp;. & quot; simply would confirm the observation and preclude any opportunity to improve the behavior.
But what did I get from this caller? I got rants. I got raves. And in the end, I got a slogan. In essence, I got confirmation. I like confirmation. It tells me that I may be right. The more times that I am right, the closer I get to the truth. And life, at least human life, is a journey toward truth.
The search for truth requires intelligence. But intelligence has its enemies. Those enemies include ignorance, prejudice, loyalty, dishonesty and laziness. In the instance above, the caller's loyalty to the Democrat party is an obstacle to any intelligent assessment of President Bush. If Ted Kennedy invaded Iraq, would he have the same opinion of the war? I doubt it. Yet, the facts would be the same. Only their source would be different. Intelligent assessments are fact based, not source based.
Contrary to the caller's opinion, I am not a Republican, nor do I dislike Democrats. If I dislike anyone, I dislike people who refuse to seek the truth. They are a danger to themselves and to others.
The beauty of truth is that it is not relative. Opinions are relative. Beliefs are relative. Truth is absolute, unchanging and universal. It is the same for everyone, and everyone can see it, if they choose. But first they have to vanquish its enemies. That battle is not with me; it is with themselves. But it is a battle worth fighting because it is that battle that makes us human, which I believe is more important than being a Democrat or a Republican.
THOMAS MASKELL
Poland