Have we lost sight of middle ground?


Regardless of which side of the political spectrum we 'rant' from, it is to be hoped that our goal is to eventually meet somewhere in the middle. Compromise and bipartisanship are the only way to ensure the survival of rightist and leftist viewpoints.

There is no 'winner' in this debate. It's not a race. It's a process.

When extreme ideas are pushed to the front, as we are seeing with the emergence of the neoconservatives, it is a polarizing event. Supporters are buoyed and rallied. Detractors are enraged and mobilized. Revelations in Iraq of prison torture and abuse, and the nonexistence of WMD may finally be halting the rightward swing of the political pendulum.

But I could be wrong.

The neoconservative movement has gone out of its' way to ensure victory for their ideological agenda. Deregulation of media ownership consolidation has silenced independent voices and monopolized the terms of social debate. Nearly every week new bills are introduced in Congress aiming to legislate moral changes, reducing existing freedoms and choices we currently enjoy.

Our cherished and long-held freedoms are seemingly under attack by the very neoconservative movement that uses 'the fight for freedom' as their rallying cry. Exactly whose freedoms are they fighting for, and why hasn't the Constitution provided for them sufficiently enough that they feel the need to muck around with this most critical document?

Americans need to cut through the smoke and mirrors and get back to heart of the issue: does our Constitution, as it stands, do an adequate job of establishing and protecting the rights and freedoms that we've enjoyed for generations?

Then leave it alone, and let the system work. Stop trying to change the rules just to favor whatever viewpoint you happen to support. Let's get back to the idea that working together will always accomplish more than trying to force your point of view down someone's throat.

Posted: Sat - May 22, 2004 at 10:49 PM          

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