Every republican is a racist; every democrat is a communist. Both statements are extreme and just, plain wrong.
Every time you paint people with broad strokes, your ignorance is on display. If you have to ask why, stop reading now.
Just because our leaders in Washington, D.C. choose to be at loggerheads (and we don't mean the turtles) doesn't mean that everybody thinks the same way they do. Sometimes, digging your heals into a particular issue isn't the way to get your point across or your plan accomplished.
And, don't think that every "D' or "R' you know is mindlessly adhering to their party representatives in the Capitol.
So why do some espouse, and even attack, others for what somebody else believes or does.
The answer most often is that people are frustrated and since they can't take it out on their elected official, they take it out on each other. It's that broad stroke, painting people because of what they are rather than who they are.
As we fell deeper and deeper into this mindset over the past decade or so, hate festered to the point where it finally exploded.
We try to battle back, but finding the logic in the often childish ways government officials perform their duties and present themselves to the people makes it a nearly impossible task.
So as the elected continue their decline into blatant stubbornness and tantrums, each one seeing who can puff out their chest further, and talk the loudest and most disrespectful, we need to recognize that we are better than them.
Our officials need to stop using a "shotgun" approach when problem solving – the scattering may hit the target but many others will also be hurt. They need to take aim directly at the issue and address it. Then, they must work hard to achieve a solution with sound logic, reason, and evidence to support their position. If they do it before the fighting starts, there may not be a fight.
Continuously butting heads will lead to a headache, not a solution.
Out here in the cheap seats, we must learn to use a pointed, detail brush to paint our opinions and we must make it our responsibility to know who people are.
Avoid painting people with a broad stroke. It's ignorant and a good way to loose friends.