DISAGREE: But let’s talk

I participated in Kootenai County government for 13 years, seven as a volunteer and six as an elected official. I often found myself in discussions with citizens and what was often the case, we could agree with each other on 4 out of 5 topics but the conversation almost always was limited to the issue we disagreed upon.

The citizen would offer their perspective and I would listen and then offer mine. Sometimes we simply had to agree to disagree and that is OK. My wife and I don’t always agree and that is also OK.

I find it interesting that today it seems we often cannot agree to disagree and this cascades into confrontational situations. I find this disagreement within religions as well.

The Christian church has many denominations which agree on most foundational truths but then the discussion can become adversarial based on their differences in textural interpretations. The same applies to the Jewish faith when you examine the differences between the different sects such as, but not limited to, Orthodox, Hassidic and Contemporary.

Social media, whether you are on the left or the right of the political spectrum, has exacerbated this situation. Too many people are willing to “yell” from behind the screen of their device instead or reaching out in person and at some point, if necessary, agreeing to disagree.

God gave us two ears and only one mouth. Too many people have lost the ability or the desire to listen. I hope this gives us all something to think about next time we engage in what I hope is a civil discourse of ideas.

DAN GREEN

Hayden