The Rules of Engagement

This political season was nasty.  Name calling, false accusations, and fact-free assertions ran rampant across the interwebs.  As a long-time political junkie, I found this trend particularly disheartening.  I love a hot-blooded political fight as much as the next guy, but I also love shaking hands afterwards.  Social media has drawn more people into the political process, which is great because involvement makes the whole system thrive.  However, if social media is the new venue for political discourse, let’s lay down some ground rules.

1)      No name calling.  Insulting your fellow Americans by calling them crazy, uninformed, stupid, sheep, wackos, and even Nazis simply because they share different beliefs than you is disrespectful and unnecessary.  Petty name-calling weakens your argument.  Save it for the playground.

2)      No generalizing.  All Republicans don’t believe the same thing, nor do Democrats adhere to the same beliefs.  Each of us comes to the political fray with personal experiences that shape our world view.  Respect your opponent’s life experience by NOT putting them in a box.

3)      Separate politics and religion.  The internet is not a bar, so politics and religion are up for discussion, but they are two separate debates.  All conservatives are not Christian and all liberals are not Jews.  In a political debate, attacking another person’s faith, especially in a country whose Constitution guarantees both a secular government and religious freedom, accomplishes nothing.  In politics, religion is a non-issue.

4)      Check your facts.  Nothing ruins a great debate like a lie, half-truth, or a fabricated talking point.  Before you enflame your opponent with the morning’s latest accusation or something you read in an email, run it through one of the many unbiased online fact-checking machines.  Factcheck.org, politifact.org, Wikipedia.org, and national newspapers (excluding the opinion pages) may support or disprove your assertion.  If it checks out, use it.  If your assertion is false or mostly false, you may want to re-evaluate your position.  Facts are facts.  False declarations are lies.  Something that you think ought to be true, but is proven untrue, has no place in honest discourse.

5)      Facts are facts.  If you struggle to prove your point based on the facts you are finding, consider that perhaps the facts are correct and you need to modify your position.  It’s OK to change and grow, even as an adult!  Avoid criticizing the source of the facts, as well.  Finding a fact distributed by the Congressional Budget Office or the Bureau of Labor Statistics that disproves your assertion is a red flag – you may be wrong.  Admit it, adapt, and move on.  You’ll find peace.

6)      Cite non-partisan news sources.  Rush’s point about global warming being caused by sheep farts in New Zealand might be factually spot-on, but there’s a pretty good chance your liberal opponent thinks Rush is a pompous gas bag.  If Mr. Limbaugh’s facts are correct, you will be able to find them in an unbiased source.  Factcheck.org, politifact.org, Wikipedia.org, and national newspapers (excluding the opinion pages) are great sources for information.  MSNBC, FOX News, Huffington Post, Daily KOS, and Andrew Breitbart are biased and sometimes opinion-based sources.  Remember that, although the information from these outlets may be factually true, we are living in a time when the media has lost objective credibility.  In many cases, the line between real news and entertainment is hopelessly blurred.  Respect your opponent’s skepticism of political news sources and simply avoid them.   Cite your facts from unbiased sources and you’ll enjoy hard-won credibility.  As a credible source, you’re more likely to sway your opponent to see your point of view more clearly.

7)      Avoid the “They’re all the same” trap.  All politicians are not sleazebags and all political parties differ.  If you are unclear about the positions of the various political parties, and how they differ, I encourage you to investigate their websites and read the entire party platform.  Democrats, the American Communist Party, Republicans, the Green Party, and Libertarians are all different.  Accusing them of all “being the same” does a great disservice to those who serve our country honestly and hold fast to their principles.

8)      Learn the terminology.  Learn the difference between a political system and an economic system. 

9)      Keep it in perspective.  When emphasizing the scale of an alleged scandal, refrain from quantifying it as “the biggest in history”, as in “This fiasco is the biggest in history.”  Pearl Harbor, the Holocaust, September 11, and the Khmer Rouge are what you’re up against.  A politician makes a closed-door deal with a company he used to run?  Definitely lacks scruples, but not the worst move in history.  Keep it in perspective.

10)   Hitler was Hitler.  No current leaders come close to reviving the atrocities of Hitler.  If you compare any current world leader to Hitler, you lose the entire argument.  If your opponent compares any current world leader to Hitler, congratulations, you win!  Discussion over, log off, go outside.

There you have it!  Adhering to these rules of engagement ensure respectful online political discourse.  If you choose to engage, be prepared to learn, bend, grow, and change.  This is how we can mend the massive chasm between the left and right.  We must respect each other first.  Remember that the words you type are read by somebody just like you, sitting in front of the screen looking for a connection, trying to sort out something in the midst of work, parenting, homework, hobbies, and a dream of something better.  Be a part of it.  Be a part of making it better, smarter, and more respectful for everybody.