Upon finishing a week of camping at Havasupai, I spied one of the trucks in the parking lot sporting a bumper sticker with a rebel civil war southern flag and the words "No Obama." Frankly, it was an ignorant message.
I taught a scout troop, kayaking and canoeing at Silver Lake, yesterday. I don't know what caused several of the boys to express their displeasure toward President Obama (I didn't say or do anything myself), but their comments were very vitriolic, irrational, and I could tell they were mimicking their parents. One mentioned that the president is trying to do away with Fourth of July celebrations and this holiday. I wanted to say something, but didn't, because I wasn't sure how to do it without interjecting politics into my lesson and causing a rift. I know, now, what I would have said. (I’ll save that for later.)
Many of you know I am a vocal and enthusiastic President Obama supporter, even though I am sometimes disturbed by some of his security policies and many of his statements made for political expediency – as opposed to what I know he'd say if not worried about his image and the vote.
Nevertheless, the amount of hysteria associated with his presidency (as exemplified by the above examples) causes me to ask people to search their hearts, educate their minds, and to strive to intelligently express the reasons they disagree with the president without resorting to vulgarity, fanciful musings, or consciously or subconsciously racist sentiments that make them appear doltish and ignorant.
Contrary to what you might think, I respect those who disagree with the president as fellow citizens and brothers here in this beautiful country. I just respect, more, those who concretely express the reasons why they are opposed to him and have a factual basis of their displeasure. I then reserve my highest respect for those who not only can express and appropriately validate their own position, but understand fully why others may disagree with them and can appreciate why their experiences and the factual underpinnings of their opinions cause them to have a particular position.
Some of you get this respect, and my hat and highest esteem goes out to you.
Loren M. Lambert © July 17, 2013
I taught a scout troop, kayaking and canoeing at Silver Lake, yesterday. I don't know what caused several of the boys to express their displeasure toward President Obama (I didn't say or do anything myself), but their comments were very vitriolic, irrational, and I could tell they were mimicking their parents. One mentioned that the president is trying to do away with Fourth of July celebrations and this holiday. I wanted to say something, but didn't, because I wasn't sure how to do it without interjecting politics into my lesson and causing a rift. I know, now, what I would have said. (I’ll save that for later.)
Many of you know I am a vocal and enthusiastic President Obama supporter, even though I am sometimes disturbed by some of his security policies and many of his statements made for political expediency – as opposed to what I know he'd say if not worried about his image and the vote.
Nevertheless, the amount of hysteria associated with his presidency (as exemplified by the above examples) causes me to ask people to search their hearts, educate their minds, and to strive to intelligently express the reasons they disagree with the president without resorting to vulgarity, fanciful musings, or consciously or subconsciously racist sentiments that make them appear doltish and ignorant.
Contrary to what you might think, I respect those who disagree with the president as fellow citizens and brothers here in this beautiful country. I just respect, more, those who concretely express the reasons why they are opposed to him and have a factual basis of their displeasure. I then reserve my highest respect for those who not only can express and appropriately validate their own position, but understand fully why others may disagree with them and can appreciate why their experiences and the factual underpinnings of their opinions cause them to have a particular position.
Some of you get this respect, and my hat and highest esteem goes out to you.
Loren M. Lambert © July 17, 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment