Be gracious in victory or defeat

Here we sit, another election come and gone. As I read the news and the comments in the articles, I see the same rhetoric being thrown around that was done in 2020. The election was rigged, it was a cheat, something is fishy and on and on.

Can we just stop? Can we just become one people again and learn to live and work together? Is that too much to ask?

It amazes me that people cannot be gracious in victory and humble in defeat. That we cannot say congratulations, or hey, tough luck, maybe next time and then crack a beer with each other. How and when did it become OK to despise your fellow man because of their political alliance?

In the past decade, we have seen this country crack and start to crumble over politics and policies. There have been heated arguments, screaming matches, people assaulting others for a bumper sticker, a hat, or a T-shirt. When will this insanity stop? I freely admit I got caught up in some of it, I now see it from a different perspective. I am not proud of my actions, but I am not going to apologize for it either. It is done and now all I can do is move forward and learn from my mistakes.

It is time to end the name calling, time to stop the derision. Enough with the demonrats, libturds, rethuglican, repugnantcans. Just because an elected official does it, there isn’t carte blanche for the constituents to do it. We are adults. At least we should be; you can’t vote if you are not.

Fearmongering is another thing that needs to end. No, we aren’t going to become a communist country, no it isn’t going to become a dystopian hellscape, no we aren’t going to have a nuclear holocaust because World War III started. Life will go on. It always does. It is OK to have concern, it is understandable to be uncertain. However, spreading the fear and adding to people’s already stressful lives helps no one.

Here is an idea, if you do have friends or family that lean differently politically than you, reach out. Check on them, let them air their fears and concerns. Try and reassure them that the sun will still come up, that there is hope. Let them know they matter to you, make sure that they know you are still a friend, that you still care. Don’t gloat, don’t rub it in their face. This isn’t a football game or boxing match where they picked the losing side; this is life, it is reality, and for some their fears may be valid.

I will close with this. We live in a state with a population smaller than a lot of cities in this country. We live in a community with fewer people than some neighborhoods or apartment complexes. We are neighbors, we are friends, family, acquaintances and coworkers. We can either decide to live and let live, or we can continue down a contentious path leading to deeper divides.

I know how to choose. It is simple. I choose to treat everyone equally, regardless of their race, country of origin, sex, sexuality or political affiliation. I choose to believe that we are a nation that can heal if we only take a moment and get a deep breath. I will continue to stand up for what I believe is right, I will listen to opposing viewpoints without prejudice. I will continue to believe that people are still just people.

What I won’t do is degrade or belittle those with differing viewpoints. I will also not listen to those opposing viewpoints if they are racist, sexist or demeaning to any class of citizen. That is not what this country is about. That is not what any of us should be about.

That is how I will choose to live my life. How about you? Think about it, won’t you? Let’s become whole again.

Dustin would like to hear what you’re thinking about these days. You can drop him a line at dustinb@midco.net to let him know what you thought about his column, or just to say “Hi!”