“Be Reasonable!”
If any of you watch “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart you’ll probably know what my title means. This saying originated from the episode featuring John P. Avlon, an eloquent campaigner of the “centrists”, a group that has lost all political control in the US despite being the majority. This is a sad thing, as extremists are responsible for the take over, and the result is a tug-o-war between two very different view points. The moderate middle gets left behind. It is not too difficult to find reminders of this, for example
this story from DailyKos.
What worries me is in times of importance this process seems almost inevitable, because for every 1 proactive “undecided” you have 100 proactive extremists. The centre just doesn’t care as fanatically as the special-interest groups who will work much harder during these crucial times (i.e. our post-9/11 world).
Consequently, due to the paranoia-drenched culture and the furor kicked up by the Liberal scandal, this fake polarization is taking place in Canada and the middle has lost its voice. Those who are most respectful, tolerant, and insightful are those who can see good in both sides of an issue, so it is precisely those people who need to be able to be heard. I see 2 full-page articles denouncing gay-marriage that have nothing to do with reasoned debate in the same issue of National Post and I wonder where that money came from. Or I see “Librano/Konservative” posters and I know Canadians are better than this. This type of politics leads to division. Respect is what we are known for. Let’s go with that instead; respect, reason and a good dash of not taking ourselves too seriously. The forked road the American political scene is one I do not wish Canadian politics to follow. So let politicians and their pundits hear your shout “Be Reasonable!”, because most of us are.
