America is a nation of extremes, and that isn”t a recent development.
From pop culture to the way we eat and dress, we don”t like to do anything halfway. This thought process is especially prominent in the current presidential race.
Erin Bamer
Argonaut
Republican frontrunner Donald Trump is a great example of this, because he goes big in everything he does – even when it”s completely inappropriate. However, he”s not the only example, and it”s sometimes hard to see that because he is such a caricature.
Politicians in both major political parties have advocated for increasingly extreme measures for much longer than the 2016 primaries have been going on. It”s clear when they refuse to agree with anything anyone in the opposite party proposes. Politicians rarely agree with people in their own party anymore.
In both the recent Republican and Democratic debates, the candidates avoid admitting that they feel the same way as another candidate, like they”d be signing their own death warrant if they did. They give the same answers as each other, with insignificant modifications to try and pass it off as though the position is original. No one corrects them either, because they don”t want to be the person to admit that they agree with their opponent.
It”s pretty easy to see how we got this way. We”re a nation of extremes and politicians know this. They know that if they say they are more in favor of one thing than another politician, then they will get the support – and votes – of the people who hold the same view.
After a while, it escalates to the point that politicians have to advocate for such extreme measures that their proposals are totally ridiculous and impractical. Still, that rarely stops them from getting votes.
The problem is that such extremes are rarely the right thing to do. Why is it so bad to agree with someone from the same party about something that could actually benefit the country?
Living with an extreme state of mind is also dangerous because it impacts how we see the people who disagree with us. We see the exaggerated version of the opposition in the media because they”re entertaining and we enjoy hyperboles, but we assume that everyone who opposes us acts like that.
People who are pro-gun control want to take away everyone”s guns, and people who are pro-gun rights are unstable rednecks who always want to be locked and loaded. People who are pro-life want to keep a woman”s uterus chained up, while people who are pro-choice are baby murderers. We”re a nation of extremes.
Disagreeing with something isn”t a bad thing. In fact, it can be used effectively if it is managed in the correct way. But stubbornly refusing to see eye-to-eye on anything will only block the path forward.
The middle ground isn”t such a horrible place to be and it could lead to a more efficient way of making progress. If we can say we believe in one thing, but also admit that a few places need improvement, we could get so much more accomplished. Compromise is a beautiful thing.
Erin Bamer can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @ErinBamer