Free Speech/Hate Speech

I'm all for free speech, and have regularly exercised the right to call into question the sanity of the previous president.  But calling for "divine assassination"???  Is this appropriate?  I realize the "Dear God, you killed my favorite actor/actress/singer...Obama is my favorite president" page is supposed to be funny, but why is it that everything we seem to hear from the Right lately is framed in violence toward those with whom they disagree?

Dissent and debate are a part of the political process that makes us strong as a country. But guns at rallies, targets on key electoral districts, prayers for the death of our president...none of this does anything to build up our country. None of this furthers the debate. And none of this makes YOU look like a reasonable human being. And frankly, if you're going to be an ass, we have nothing to talk about.

It's so frustrating that lately the standard M.O. for the opponents of the party in power seems to be simply to appeal to the lowest common denominator.  If you don't like Health Care Reform, make up a lie and say it threatens violence to my grandmother.  If your party wants to pick up seats in congress, put cross-hairs on the districts you want to win so your base knows where you've "set your sights".  If you don't like the president, bring a gun to a rally.

I wholeheartedly believe in freedom of speech.  I also believe that rational people of differing opinion CAN come together and work toward a better future for this country.  But currently the discourse in this country, particularly the noise coming from the right, isn't based on rational argument.  It's not intended to solve problems.  It's specifically (and I'm afraid almost solely) designed to get the base riled up for political gain.

Hate speech, threats of violence, the fear that's being stoked among the wing-nuts on the fringe...I'm sure it's protected by the first amendment, and I'll defend peoples rights to express themselves...but ultimately it's not good for the country.  15 years ago, indignant about the liberal policies being "rammed down the country's throats" (or just angry that they were no longer in power), the right riled up their base and it could be argued that this mentality directly led to the bombing in Oklahoma City.  Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that peoples right to free expression should be curtailed.  I'm just saying that at its most benign, this kind of nonsense is still counterproductive...and at its most extreme, it can be deadly.  And the people in power who prey upon the feeble minded among us, stirring them up to blind violence against a perceived threat...those people have blood on their hands.

I think there's a better way.  There's got to be.  The wing-nuts won't listen to any liberal.  I wish the moral people on the right would stand up and speak out.  Can you imagine the impact of Orrin Hatch or Mitt Romney standing up and saying, "I'm a republican, and I think praying for God to kill Obama is offensive and a symptom of a deeper discomfort with the president that we should address and move past."

Most of my family dismisses anything "serious" I have to say because my views tend to be pretty liberal.  But if people they respect...say church leaders or conservative political figures or talk show hosts...if these people stood up and denounced the lies and the nonsense and called for more productive discourse, I think my family would listen.  And so would the country.

So listen up, Republicans...want to get back in power?  Want a chance at getting my vote?  Stop behaving like children and encourage your constituents to do the same.   Stop hiding behind the lies and the furor of the corporate manufactured tea party bullshit and get off your thumbs and do something!  Stand for something!  Despite our differences, there was a time I respected men like Orrin Hatch and John McCain, not because I felt they were politically right, but because I felt they were honorable men.  Win that back by behaving honorably and encouraging your supporters to do the same.  Then we'll talk.