Hindsight is 50/50

"Hindsight is 50/50," Cam Newton of the Carolina Panthers said after a tough loss several weeks ago - sounds like a Yogi Berra quote, doesn't it?  I first heard the phrase many years ago when a guy I worked with said it mistakenly.  I'm not sure he knew what he was talking about... I don't think Cam did either. The real phrase is "Hindsight is 20/20".  It means everything is more clear when looking back on it.  You can see all the things you should have done, should have said, etc.  The best choices are obvious once you know the outcome.

Cam Newton

But recently I've begun to think that Cam may be on to something here.  I don't think hindsight is 20/20 anymore.  At least not in this country.

I've had a theory for some while now that America has become a 50/50 nation.  We are split evenly on just about every topic - it doesn't seem to matter what the subject is;  immigration, abortion, gay marriage, legalized pot, healthcare, Ebola, gun control, the budget, the economy, elections, the war on terrorism, and the list goes on and on and on and on...

And now it seems that even when an event is over or comes to completion, we are still split 50/50.  We can't even look back at the facts and decide collectively what should have been done.  Take for example Mr. Duncan, who died of Ebola in Texas.  People are still split on what could have been done and should have been done and when it should have been done. Everyone wants to lay blame rather than just define the right thing to do.

In a speech Lincoln gave after being chosen as the Republican Party nomination for one of the Illinois Senate seats in 1858 he said:

"A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free."

It is one of the most famous lines from his speeches.  I believe he got the line from the book of Matthew, chapter 12, where Jesus said:

“Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand." (NIV)

Either way, the point is clear.  Being divided like this is not a good thing.  I blame politics and political parties for the current state of affairs in this country.  I'm definitely not opposed to political parties.  As a matter of record I think they are absolutely necessary.  But in this country we have moved from this traditional definition...

A political party is an organization of people which seeks to achieve goals common to its members through the acquisition and exercise of political office.

... to something more akin to...

"It's us against them!  Dam the torpedoes and prepare for battle."

Debate and discussion on issues is a must.  We need to explore the other side's views and ideas so that we can ensure we know the whole story and make decisions that are best for everyone, not just ourselves.  But that is not what we do anymore.  The Interweb is full of hate speech, slander, and outright attempts to keep both sides at each other's throats.

We have to be open to new ideas and we have to sometime concede that we don't know everything or have all the right answers. We have to lose gracefully every once in a while without getting our panties in twist and letting it fuel hate.  I'm amazed at how much evil I see on the web for political candidates.  I'm also amazed at how every single person with a Twitter account, Facebook page, or blog is somehow elevated to the level of supreme knowledge holder with the answer to all the country's problems.

Is it a need for power? To be right? To win?  Do we somehow feel like a lesser citizen if our party or candidate did not get elected?  Does this void within us cause the need to strike out viciously at others?

General Colin Powell said;

"Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it."

That is good advice.  Lose gracefully.

Daniel Day Lewis, as Lincoln

The singular issue Lincoln spoke about was slavery.  There were some pretty distinct lines dividing the country then; the north and the south and that distinction eventually led to the Civil War.  There are no distinct dividing lines on the issues we face today.  Nor is there a single issue.

Where are our divisions going to take us?  If we can't intelligently and rationally come to consensus on things what will be our outcome?

Don't get me wrong, we can be a 50/50 nation when it comes to where we stand on the issues we face.  But we cannot (absolutely cannot) continue to be a 50/50 nation when it comes to how we treat and behave with our fellow Americans who have differing views.  Republican or Democrat - it doesn't matter who wins.  In the end we must all feel we are on the same team, America.

As a country we should strive for the unity that followed 9/11, without the need of a catastrophe as a catalyst.

God Bless,
Rob
www.starvt.com