To be politic, in polite conversation, involves a little bending of reality. Perhaps it is the telling of a “white lie,” meant to spare someone’s feelings or to acknowledge another’s beliefs to which you, yourself, do not necessarily subscribe.
POLITICS, by definition, can be a large collection of such “bending,” meant, at least in principle, in the spirit of compromise. There can be a casualty, though, facts. As these small, well-intentioned, fibs are accepted, the line of truth is gradually moved. Over the years, this reality distortion defines new facts and . . . well, consider the polarization of our current society. Is it any wonder that the extremes now dictate so much of the conversation?
I don’t really need to list examples, from either extreme — and I don’t really invite any flame wars on this discussion (I do reserve the right to remove any such comments). I just invite us all to think about the state of things and consider some cause and effect.
For some time I have decried the absence of common sense in every day life — but what passes for the common sense now often makes NO sense. Perhaps it is time we look to UNcommon sense for answers?
Peace and understanding are the simple truth — and facts, real facts, do matter.
