There are certain truisms in life that actually ring true. The other line does move faster. The Tampa Bay Rays are a good baseball team. And when the immediate reply to an inquiry concerning why an individual or group acts/speaks/thinks in a certain way is (quote) “well they started it” (end quote), their stance is to educated conviction what Gertrude Stein said of Oakland: there’s no there there.

Were the consequences not so deadly serious it’d be amusing watching both sides in this year’s election turn red and blue into purple as they shout themselves hoarse not only at each other but also any among themselves who fail to follow every jot and tittle of their personally penned therefore sacrosanct commandments. What, you don’t worship our talking points as gospel? Heresy! If either side devoted the energy currently being expended on tearing the other side down building theirs up… ah, but who am I kidding. It’s their fault. They started it! That absolves me of any responsibility, right? Er… right?

You’ll have better luck trick-or-treating at a Jehovah’s Witnesses rally than you will finding actual discourse about why one candidate personally or professionally is preferable to another. Beliefs, reasons behind those beliefs, action plans rooted in those beliefs — BAH! Who needs that when we can throw blog bombs at each other? Far easier to fabricate outrage then repeat until it’s become so ingrained into our being we start believing it ourselves. Preach to the choir while accepting a generous love offering from the congregation. That’s the ticket. Besides, they started it.

A symptom of this is how pundits on either side of the fence treat, to be more accurate mistreat, their own. Until he was nominated John McCain’s political career prime directive of ignoring party lines in favor of whatever alliance advanced causes he believed in was heralded near and far… by the left. Now he is portrayed as a Bush clone. How soon they forget. Not so quickly forgotten is how in the early part of the campaign McCain was routinely savaged by conservative blogs and talk radio precisely for ignoring party lines and doing what he felt best for the country. The snarking and sniping continues by some (*coughmichellemalkincough*).

Until he was nominated Barack Obama was dismissed by many on the left as smooth talking socialism in a suit, a featherweight lacking necessary experience. Suddenly his place of birth was a manger. Qualifications for the job? Who cares about such trivialities. He’s Obama! What more do you need? And need we remind you they started it?

Mention something about how as far as you can tell the fulcrum point of Obama’s foreign policy is appeasement. Or how his domestic policy is warmed over wealth redistribution fantasies oblivious to the reality that wealthy people are invariably quite skilled at keeping their wealth through financial (i.e. tax-avoiding) sleight of hand. Or how the delusion that taxing big business will solve everything when big business is as broke as the rest of us. News flash: when you have a consumer-based economy and retailers are dropping like flies at an insecticide manufacturers convention because consumers are no longer spending money, that proposed tax base you’re planning on tapping is a mighty dry well. Or how forcibly inserting government into feeding the illusion of entitlement (see Loans, Subprime for an example of this in action) along with its twin that presumes dictating to the haves how the government will henceforth determine how much one may have leads to nothing but further division and strife among all. Mention these things, and note the response.

It’s not how you’re wrong; the policies are in fact this or that. No, it’s how the other guy is evil. So I’ve heard… and heard and heard and heard. OK, got it. But I want an explanation about your guy. I want to know why you believe what you believe and why you believe what you propose to do based on what you believe will work. I don’t care about what you think about the other guy. I especially don’t care about what you think about the incumbent. He’s not running. So why does that matter? Why is this all I’m hearing?

“Well, they started it…”

So stop it.

Just stop it.

Make your case. Your guy isn’t the other guy? Not a case. Give me the facts, give me the figures, explain your philosophies and why you believe in them. I’ll listen. I’ve already heard all the blather about how the other guy and gal are direct descendants of the serpent in the Garden of Eden. Obviously it hasn’t moved me. Try something else… like building your candidate up instead of tearing the other candidate down.

I’m not clenched with rage about this. I’m not bitterly clinging to my guns and religion. I have a functioning brain and I’m not afraid to use it. Lay out the case for your candidate. I’ll give it a fair shake.

And once and for all, don’t tell me they started it. I don’t care. It doesn’t matter. It’s not important. We have a country that needs running. We have a world that needs to be lived in. How does hating the other side help accomplish any of this?

It doesn’t matter who started the fire in the hayloft. Everyone needs to chip in so the barn won’t burn down. To not acknowledge this speaks volumes of both sides. And the volumes don’t make for a comforting read.

Instead of blaming each other for starting it, start stopping it.

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