Apparently, I'm a snob

[BobcatJH]

So I ruffled a few feathers by writing an essay that said we'd all be better off if more of us were open to new things. Since then, I've been accused of thinking those with different opinions than mine are evil, of being a Communist, of having a stick up my butt.

Funny how asking for some openness seems to really irritate the right.

Did I make a generalization? Sure. Are there Democrats who should broaden their horizons? Sure. Are there Republicans who should broaden their horizons? Sure. But if that makes me the bad guy - wishing people would be more open to new experiences - I'm happy being the right's villain.

Again, I don't care what you're into. High-brow. Middle-brow. Low-brow. No-brow. Whatever. Not enjoying the things I wrote about doesn't make you a bad person, just as enjoying the things I wrote about doesn't make you a good person. But I'm sorry, there's nothing wrong with saying that people who are scared of change and afraid to open themselves to new experiences are really missing out. Further, there's nothing wrong with saying that I'm uncomfortable with those people running our government.

Let's play a thought game, everyone. Close your eyes and think about what I wrote. Then, as one astute commenter suggested, remove party affiliation or ideology from the equation. You're left with two worlds. One world that is willing to embrace change. One world that isn't. One world that seeks out new experiences. One world that doesn't. Then, read what people said in response to what I wrote. Judging from the tone of the conservative responses, it's clear what world many of them belong to.

What's funniest to me about this minor dust-up is the irony in being criticized for what I wrote from people whose party has systematically demonized anyone who not only isn't like them, but also anyone who doesn't think like them. Do I claim to know the absolute truth? Of course not. But I also don't claim that people who don't believe as I do are destined to a fiery eternity in Hell. I haven't physically assaulted anyone for believing differently than me, just as I haven't called for anyone's assassination.

I also represent, apparently, a party that does the actual fear-mongering in this country. We've also been treated in the comments section on my site to the "all your party does is oppose Bush" canard. I didn't know I was in the presence of such comedic giants! Brad Stine would surely be jealous. But seriously, folks …

If you listened to Republicans before the 2004 election, you would have thought that a vote for Sen. John Kerry meant America would suffer an instantaneous holocaust. If you listen to them now, you would think that the Democrats are the only people standing between Americans and a world free of terrorism and war. Of course, if you listen to them, you probably still think Saddam Hussein had something to do with September 11. So listen to Republicans at your own risk. And when they tell you we're the fear-mongerers, try keeping your laughter to yourself.

Please do the same when you hear a Republican accuse you of not having any ideas. We do have ideas. Ending the war. Healthcare for everyone. Energy independence. Equal rights for all Americans. Freedom of choice. Government free of corruption and that serves the people. Lifting up everyone. Our ideas built this country. And ours will save it. It's as though Republicans have screwed up this country beyond comprehension and are now turning to us and saying, "Well, what are you going to do about it? How would you fix it?" That's how, but it's hard to change things for the better when those in charge aren't open to new ideas.

Though I didn't necessarily expect it to happen in such a insult-laden manner, those righties replying to my original post only served to reinforce my hypothesis: That Republicans need to get out more. While I wrote originally about new experiences, I could have just as easily written about leaving the cavern of conservative groupthink. Leaving that comfort zone is just as important - if not more - to helping turn this once-great country around.

[dusmcj]

1. It's about standards. Theirs suck, ours are better. Simple really. nt